Team Steel Maximum
by Maxy Steel
Summary: My freakishly long series that includes all the emotions, four new main characters, dozens of minor characters, and ain't even close to being finished. It'll never go below a "PG" rating, but will never go above an "R." Not recomended for those who hate
1. Long Lost Twin Sister

_General disclaimer: The TV show Max Steel is not mine, though I really wish it was. It belongs to a number of companies such as Netter and Foundation Imaging, and others whose names escape my memory at the moment, but my name wasn't on that list, if I recall. Kelly McGrath/Maxy Steel is my character, and I will set my corgi-beagle on you if you use her name or her character without my permission. Enough of that, on with the story!_

  


**LONG LOST TWIN SISTER**

**BY:**

**Maxy Steel**

  


**Timeline: Kinda acts as an over-write to the real series, starts about the same time as the real series began. Beyond that, there is no real connection. Some stories may be similar to episodes, and those will have special disclaimers warning you.**

  


"Whoo-hoo!" Josh shouted excitedly as his surfboard caught a big wave. Though no one was around to see, he performed some simple, but flashy, tricks out of boredom. As he coasted gracefully towards the shore, Josh spotted a car pull up. He glided closer, and a girl stepped from the vehicle. He may have been far from the shore, but the blond teen could clearly see the girl's red shorts, white tank top, long blond hair, and searching expression. Josh had the strange feeling he had seen her before. He brought in his board until he was in waist deep water.

"Hey, are you lost?" he greeted, exiting the water and dropping his board on the sand. The girl turned to face him, then walked over, a polite smile on her face.

"Kind of. I'm looking for someone," she replied, pushing her ponytail behind her shoulder. It quickly flipped back.

"Well, I know a lot of people. Maybe I can help you," the male teenager offered. The girl stepped closer, and dug into her purse. During this, Josh noticed how tall she was. Her head was two or three inches past his shoulder. He started when she handed him a small picture. Josh studied the two children in the picture. Then he almost gasped. One of the newborns in the picture was him! The blond narrated the picture.

"The baby on the right is me, and the one on the left is my twin brother, who I'm trying to find."

Slowly, Josh turned the photo over. He recognized his mother's neat handwriting on the back, declaring the picture to be of "Josh and Kelly McGrath, two days." Josh's hand shook, and he almost dropped the photo.

"Is something wrong?" the girl asked, peering at his face.

"The boy...he's...me," Josh breathed, feeling strange. Where had she gotten the picture?

"What?!" was the shocked reply, filled with disbelief.

"I remember Jeff telling me that I had a twin sister, but that she died when we were a week old," Josh lamented. The female looked surprised. All the same, large tears welled up in her eyes.

"You're...my...brother?" she murmured, stepping closer to the young man. Suddenly, Kelly, that's who she obviously was, threw her arms around his neck.

"I can't believe it," she choked, burying her face in his shoulder. Josh was too shocked at having his supposedly dead sister appear out of the blue to do anything but stand there. After a few moments of crying, Kelly released Josh's neck and stepped back, rubbing her eyes, trying to settle her surging emotions.

"I'm sorry, it's just..." she whispered, her words further muffled by her hand.

"I know. I wasn't really expecting to see you either," Josh tried weakly to comfort her.

"So, who's Jeff? And where are Mom and Dad?" Kelly questioned, apparently having some sort of weird ability to instantly calm down.

"We shouldn't be talking about this here," Josh cautioned. "Let's head to my house. It's not far," he offered, getting a small grin from Kelly.

"Is the crime really that bad here?" she joked, following him towards their cars.

"I'll explain later," Josh assured. She agreed to follow him to the beach house.

"Berto, could you get Smith on the line?" Josh asked as he steered.

"Sure, _hermano._ Uh, why?" Berto replied agreeably.

"Uh, I found my sister," Josh explained, the words sounding stupid in his own ears. The younger teen said something, but it was cut off by Josh being transferred to Smith's line.

"Smith here," Josh's father greeted.

"Hi, Dad. Um, I've got a slight problem here..." Josh began.

*****

Josh finished explaining the whole scene to him just as he pulled up to his street.

"Josh, you don't really believe that this girl is your sister, do you?" Smith said as he neared the driveway.

"Actually, I do," Josh retorted, a little angrily, wondering why his step-father wouldn't believe him. Of all the people to accept it first, Jeff had been on the top of the list.

"Josh, I really don't think it's a good idea is all," Smith explained.

"Dad, who else could she be? How many other people could have had that picture?" Josh snapped angrily, wondering where the hesitance was coming from.

"She could be a Dread agent," Smith warned.

"DAD! You think everyone is a Dread agent! Why can't you relax a little?! Dread isn't trying to get me at all hours of the day!" Josh fairly shouted, punching the wheel. Smith let his foster son calm down for a second.

"Josh, how about I come meet her?" Smith suggested, feeling it was the best way to find out wether the girl was authentic or not. After all, he was one of the only people alive who knew the most about the twins, though that wasn't saying much.

"Okay," Josh agreed reluctantly, parking the car, still hurt that Jefferson hadn't believed him from the start.

"And Josh," Smith began as the teen exited his car.

"Yeah?" Josh sighed.

"Don't tell her anything about N-tek until I get there," Smith ordered. He clicked off the transmission before Josh could say anything. 

"Are you just going to stand there?" 

Josh snapped his head around to see Kelly standing near him.

"Oh, yeah. Come on, let's go," he offered, moving away from the car. She stayed close to him as they entered.

"Do you want something to drink?" Josh, ever the host, asked his newfound sister.

"Sure, uh...how about water?" Kelly replied. The boy nodded and directed her to the living room while he went to get the drinks. His head was spinning with questions as he filled two glasses with ice water from a pitcher in the fridge. He barely registered the chill of the cups against his palms as he entered the living room, where Kelly had seated herself on the couch.

"Thank you," she grinned up at him, taking a cup. Josh dropped into a chair next to the couch and set his glass on the table. For a second, they had a quick staring contest.

"So...where did you grow up?" was the best thing he could think of to start with.

"I think how we were separated would be a less confusing start," Kelly sighed.

"Okay, shoot," Josh smiled back at her. His sister took several deep breaths, and placed her cup on the table.

"First off, the person who I lived with didn't even bother hiding the truth from me. My `mother' was a nurse, Carol Relin, who had helped deliver us. Then, about a week after, one of the nurses accidentally took me to another part of the hospital. According to Carol, it had been right after visiting hours were over, so no one realized the mistake until the next morning. The nurse panicked, made up some bogus story about me dying, then gave me to Carol, then quit. She panicked too, and for a good reason. She couldn't think of what to do. She couldn't take me back to our parents. They could have filed a kidnapping charge or something. Her story wouldn't have made sense without the other nurse to back her up, and that one had left. So, instead, she quit her job and moved to Florida, taking me with her. From the first day, she never let me think I was her real daughter, but she also told me to wait until I had become older before I started looking for you guys. That picture was taken at the hospital. Carol took it before she left, so I would have some proof as to my identity later on. From the first day I actually understood what Carol was saying about you three, I wanted to find you guys so much. But I just couldn't leave Carol. By the time I was 17, she had cancer, and was slowly dying. I refused to start searching for you until she was better, even though she encouraged me to look for you. Then she died. So I just started searching for you, and eventually found Del Oro. And that's pretty much my story," Kelly stated in a fairly steady voice, wiping her eyes. Josh got off the chair and sat down beside her, pulling her into a hug.

"All that matters is that we've found each other," he told her quietly. Kelly brushed her ponytail back, and carefully pushed away from him.

"So, are Mom and Dad going to be back soon?" she asked, looking at him expectantly. Josh dropped his gaze, and sighed.

"We've got a lot of ground to cover. Um, okay, the three of us went out on a boating trip when I was two, and..." Josh tried to sound matter of fact, but couldn't continue. Kelly wrapped her arms around his neck, and murmured softy to him. 

"It's okay. Just take a deep breath," she told him gently. 

"Yeah, I'm fine. But, this storm came up, we weren't expecting it...Mom...she..." Josh just couldn't finish. 

"She's gone, isn't she?" Kelly asked in a soft tone. Josh nodded wordlessly.

"What about Dad?" Kelly didn't want to press him, but she had to know. Even after spending nineteen years away from a family she'd never even really met, the teenager still was loyal, still loved without question. 

"I don't know. One minute he's home, then he left and...he never came back," Josh sounded calmer. Talking about his father wasn't as upsetting as his mother. Kelly blinked slowly. She didn't know what was worse, having a parent die, or not knowing if they were even alive.

"So, who took care of you all this time?" she asked finally.

"A family friend, Jefferson Smith," Josh explained. As if one cue, right at that moment, the doorbell rang. 

"I'll get it," he offered, getting up. _Please don't be Laura, please don't be Laura,_ he prayed. Taking on finding a missing sister was hard enough, he didn't need Laura accusing him of cheating on her as well, as he had a feeling she would. To his immense relief, it wasn't Laura, it was his adoptive father.

"Dad!" Josh greeted. Smith nodded to him, and entered. Kelly glanced up as the two men entered.

"Kelly, this is my adopted father, Jefferson Smith. Dad, this is Kelly," Josh ran through the introductions. Kelly stood, and walked up to him.

"If you're Josh's father, then you're mine too," she said logically, throwing her arms around his neck. Smith looked startled, and Josh looked ready to laugh. They split up and seated around the table. The two teens quickly filled Smith in on their conversation, and picked up from there. Smith filled both kids in on what they didn't know. This had not been part of Jefferson's original plan. He'd been planning to try to trick the girl into admitting she was a Dread agent, as he had suspected. However, he hadn't been expecting her to hug him and have all the accurate details. 

*****

Several hours later, they had recapped the last 19 years of their vastly different lives, except the incident in June, and Josh's real job at N-tek. At the moment, neither trusted her enough to let her know that, and Jeff and Josh were already coming up with excuses for Josh's frequent absences. Then Josh came up with a perfect plan.

"Hey, Kelly, maybe you could go to college with me. It'll be better than hanging around here all day," the male blond suggested.

"Why? I took a college crash course, so to speak, and graduated with honors," Kelly replied. Josh blinked, she sounded like Berto, it was scary. 

"You did? Wow," the brother exclaimed, impressed with his sister.

"Besides, how is the water around here? Florida was really great for surfing, but there weren't that many good climbing mountains around. How's the rock climbing here?" Kelly asked eagerly. Josh and Smith exchanged glances. Now she sounded like her brother.

"You mean, you like extreme sports?" Josh asked.

"Of course. We're twins, so what's so odd about that?" Kelly shrugged. Josh grinned, tossing an arm around her shoulders. "Absolutely nothing." 

*****

Over breakfast, Kelly was pleading with her brother to show her all the good sports places.

"I'll show you all the best sports places, but first, I want you to meet a couple of my friends," Josh said. He had called Pete and Laura, explained the situation. They both agreed to meet with her.

"Who are these friends?" Kelly asked. Josh merely told her that they were meeting at the beach. Kelly spotted a pair of kids, both at least 19 or older, sitting on a bench. One was a girl with black hair, and the other was a guy, also with black hair.

"Pete! Laura! Over here!" Josh yelled. The pair turned, and jumped up, heading towards them.

"Kelly, I'd like you to meet my girlfriend, Laura Chen, and a good friend of mine, Pete Costas. Guys, this is Kelly, my sister," Josh explained. 

"Nice to meet you!" Laura exclaimed, giving her a quick hug. Pete seemed to be in a trance, and it took violent nudges from both Laura and Josh to bring him back.

"Oh, hi," he stuttered. Kelly laughed, and shook hands with him. After, the four went out for lunch, and Laura and Josh were forced to keep up the conversation, as Pete was simply staring at Kelly, who sat there, returning the look with calculated friendliness.

"I think they've hit it off," Laura commented wryly to her boyfriend.

"Hey, now we can go on double dates," Josh joked along with her. 

"Huh? Oh, give it up, you two," Kelly whined. Josh shot her a raised eyebrow look.

"What? Did you have a guy back in Omaha?" he teased. Kelly dropped her gaze to the floor, and the cheer level in the room dropped considerably.

"Something like that," the blond girl forced out with little enthusiasm. The others wisely chose not to press the issue.

*****

Once Josh had shown Kelly all the best places for surfing, rock climbing, biking, hiking, and everything in between, he didn't even have to worry about making up excuses about his disappearances. He had to go looking for her. After a few times of this, Josh gave her a tracer signal. It was really a two way radio, and he could talk to her when he pressed down a button on a tracer attached to his own wrist. This device was what made telling Kelly about his double life later unnecessary. She found out, by mistake. 

*****

Kelly paused as she heard her tracer go off. _Give me a minute,_ she snapped silently, moving to a more stable place on the huge rock formation. What she heard shocked her to the core.

*****

Max usually took off his tracer for missions, but Psycho had left no time for that. He only had time to change. Unknowingly, he pressed down the speak button as he dropped into _Hawk's_ cockpit.

"Berto, where's Psycho now?" Max asked.

"He's still there, and he's still got four hostages," Berto replied.

"Any suggestions?" Max queried.

"Sorry, Max, you're gonna have to improvise. But do that quickly," Berto replied.

"Well, that's an N-tek policy, for both sides of it," Max joked, trying to ease the tension he always felt before a mission. "I really hope that I didn't make any dates with Laura. I mean, having Kelly cover for me is great, but I can't keep that up forever."

"Why don't you just tell her?" Berto suggested the obvious. Max rolled his eyes.

"Hello, bro? You feeling all right? If I tell her, than that just makes one more person Psycho can kidnap to directly threaten me. And she'd be even easier to grab then you or Rachel or Smith," he reminded. 

"Yeah, you're right," Berto admitted. Max grinned, then shifted in his seat, the usual adrenaline rush he felt building. The speaker button was pressed again, shutting it off.

*****

Kelly was frozen. Her brother, Josh McGrath, was also an N-tek agent, of this "other side," as he had put it, and he hadn't told her? Who was Psycho, and how the heck did he work into this. Well, since she had found out that, she might as well learn the rest. She would _make_ him spit it out, if nessessary.

"I better go wait for him at home," she mused, beginning to climb back down.

*****

Max wiped the sweat off of his brow, taking a deep breath as _Hawk_ shot home. 

"You okay, _hermano_?" Berto questioned, seeing his distressed look.

"I'm fine. Guess I took one too many shots," the teenager replied, wincing at a sudden pain in his chest. Berto caught the look, and noticed the change on one of the monitors.

"Max, let me pilot. You look ready to drop," he insisted. Max nodded weakly, and switched to remote. He fidgeted sharply, and cried out at a sudden piercing pain in his left side. He could barely breath.

"Max?" Berto's voice questioned, seeing yet another change in the scans. His left lung had been damaged somehow. The teenager on the other end tried to speak, then passed out. Berto urged the jet to go faster, while simultaneously alreting Smith, and Yevshenko. He rapidly explained the situation.

"I'll meet the jet at the landing area," Yevshenko replied, then clicked off. 

Smith arrived in the control room minutes later. He glanced worriedly at the monitors, and the blank screen.

"What happened?" he damanded.

"There's no x-ray on this. But it's got to do with his left lung," was all Berto could explain, still focusing on piloting the jet.

*****

Yevshenko got the injured teenager down to the medical area, and ran a quick check up. She listened to his heart and lungs, then wheeled him into x-ray. Smith came in just after she'd gotten the read-out back.

"He broke a rib, and it's poking into his left lung," she explained before the boy's father could ask. He nodded, and left the room. If it was as he thought, Kelly would need to be told, at least that she wasn't going to see her brother for a few days.

*****

The N-tek official had been prepared to have to go looking for his adopted son's sister, but to his surprise, she was waiting at the urban house the twins had. The words that came out of her mouth were even more shocking.

"What does N-tek really do?" she demanded as he entered.

"What do you mean?" Smith asked, genuinely confused by her behavior.

"What do you people really do? Do you run a drug lab as well as a sports tech company? Is Psycho one of your dealers who flipped out? What's going on, and why did you have to bring Josh into it? Who's Berto, and why is he calling Josh Max?!" Kelly spoke so rapidly that Smith could barely understand her.

"Wait, calm down. Where did you learn all this?" Smith was too shocked to say much else. Kelly reluctantly went and sat down on the couch, crossing her arms. Smith repeated his earlier question.

"Josh had his tracer speaker on. I heard everything he and `Berto' said," she snapped in reply. Smith realized that whatever she had heard, she had misinterpreted it greatly.

"Kelly, I can explain. Yes, there are two sides to N-tek, but our other job is stopping terrorists. Psycho is employed by our biggest threat, John Dread. Josh is one of our best agents, and his identity at N-tek is Max Steel. That's what we do," Smith explained quickly. Kelly folded her arms, hurt, anger, and mistrust etched on her face.

"Nice story, but where's Josh? I'll believe it when I see and talk to him," the teen replied firmly, a look of "so, what do you say to that?" in her eyes.

"All right, I'll take you down there. I warn you, Josh is in serious condition. And he still looks like Max," Smith agreed.

"What does that mean?" the young woman asked.

"You'll see when we get there," Smith replied mysteriously.

*****

Yevshenko had surgially replaired the damage and had her patient resting comfortably in the recovery bay, by the time the father and not-so-trusting daughter arrived.

"Dr. Yevshenko, may we see Max?" Smith requested. Yevshenko eyed Kelly with suspicion.

"Josh's sister. Kelly, meet Dr. Yevshenko," Smith explained. The doctor nodded, and let them in. Kelly looked at the limp form on one of the beds.

"I think we're in the wrong room," she stated. The boy in here didn't look anything like her brother. Kelly watched Yevshenko give the strange boy a shot.

"Believe it or not, that is Josh, he's just in `Max Mode,'" Smith told her.

"He doesn't look anything like my brother," Kelly insisted. Smith stepped up and pushed a button on Max's bio-link. There was a crackle of light, and suddenly, the boy was her twin brother. She turned white.

"Josh!" Kelly gasped, rushing to stand beside her only family left. He didn't respond verbally, or with any motions. Yevshenko was speaking to Smith quietly.

"So, he'll be all right?" Smith asked in a low voice, listening partially as Kelly spoke to her brother. Yevshenko nodded her confirmation.

"As soon as the abrasions heal, which shouldn't be more than few days, given his accelerated regeneration system," she affirmed. 

*****

After the little scene, Smith was walking Kelly down to the TSO room.

"Now that you know, I may as well introduce you to Max's other team members," Smith offered, knowing that probably would have been next on the girl's mind.

"Does everyone call him Max?" Kelly asked.

"Only when he looks like Max," Smith replied.

"How did that happen?" she continued, gazing with interest around the halls as they headed for the control room.

"It's a long story, which started back in June. You can ask Josh for the long version, but a short version is Josh was trying to stop an intruder, and ended up being drenched in suspension fluid filled with nano-tek max, tiny machines that can reproduce at an alarming rate. To save his life, we hit him with transphasik energy. The result was Josh becoming twice as strong normally, and the ability to become ten times stronger. And he could switch to another identity. It was logical to have him join, once he had learned the do's and do not's," Smith explained.

"That was still pretty long," Kelly grinned as they reached the TSO room. Berto looked up as they entered, and offered a friendly smile.

"You must be Kelly," Berto greeted. Kelly blinked and stepped back, blushing slightly.

"Who is that guy?" she asked quietly of her brother's step-father.

"I'm Roberto Martinez, but you can call me Berto," Max's friend offered.

"Berto monitors Max, makes sure he has enough T-juice to live," Smith explained.

"I know you because I can see and hear everything Max can, using this equipment," Berto offered in explanation, gesturing to the controls. Even with everything that was going on, the young woman couldn't help thinking, _wow, he's cute! I wonder if he's got a girlfriend..._

"Okay, I get it now," she stated, trying to sound casual, moving closer to the controls. She reached out and tapped a few buttons experimentally.

"Hey, don't touch that!" Berto warned. Kelly ignored him and continued pushing buttons and twisting dials, until he grabbed her arm to affirm his earlier statement.

"You really need to update this system. I my computer is more advanced than this," the teen observed after a minute. "I can give you a hand." she added carefully after a second.

"Uh...okay," Berto wasn't really sure how to respond. Kelly smiled slightly, and grabbed a chair, pulling it up and beginning to type some things. Smith sighed and left. The rest of the introductions could wait.

*****

Rachel walked into the TSO room to talk to Berto about how Max was doing.

"Berto, how is...oh, who's the girl?" Rachel blinked in surprise, seeing a young blond sitting next to Berto, busily typing. As of then, the girl didn't seem to have noticed her.

"Hi, Rachel. Max should be all right, and this is his sister...Kelly, right?" Berto responded, looking to Kelly for confirmation. She leaned back from the keyboard and nodded. She turned and saw Rachel.

"Oh, hi! You're...?" she greeted, jumping up and zipping over to the N-tek agent. Rachel hesitantly smiled at the younger girl. Kelly offered a bigger smile, trying to be firendly.

"Rachel Leeds. You're Max's sister?" she asked.

"Yeah, his long lost twin sister," Kelly smiled, a little brighter, holding out her hand. Rachel shook it.

"I suppose you've just found out about N-tek's real purpose?" Rachel continued.

"Yeah, sounds exciting. Where do I sign up?" Kelly joked nervously, feeling tense from having their scrutiny. Rachel and Berto felt a sudden unease. Maybe Smith was right. She seemed a little...odd. Berto tried to write it off as how they'd met, but Rachel didn't.

*****

Kelly sort of stuck with Rachel and Berto, meeting the other N-tek agents with them. For some reason beyond Kelly's understanding, everyone around N-tek seemed hesitant to be near her. It made her even more nervous, and she longed for Josh to wake up. Besides Smith, he was the only one who didn't act strange around her. But then, even Smith did act a little hesitant. Kelly only took this for two out of the four days it took Max to recover. She spent the rest of the time at the beach, or one of the other places Josh had shown her. She came to visit everyday, but made a point of avoiding as many N-tek operatives as possible. In the eyes of the agents, this only increased their suspicions that she was a Dread guard.

*****

Josh blinked awake, and sat up, yawning confusedly. He wondered how long he'd been out, and where Kelly was, and more to the point, if she was worried.

"Josh?" a voice asked gently, and his right side. The boy turned, fully expecting to see Rachel. To his surprise, Kelly sat next to the bed, peering anxiously at him.

"Huh? I'm not Josh, I'm Max Steel. I think you must..." he fished frantically for an explanation. Kelly stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"Josh, don't even bother. I know everything. I met Rachel and Berto. Besides, right now you aren't in `Max Mode,'" Kelly told him with a smile.

"How did you find out?" Josh asked after a moment.

"You sat on your tracer speak button, I guess. I heard your entire conversation with Berto," Kelly grinned at him, wagging her finger in his face. Josh sighed, at least she wasn't mad.

"Man, how long was I out? My head's killing me," he sighed, rubbing his temple.

"About four days. Whatever you got hit by cracked one of your ribs, and hit one of your lungs. I was so worried," Kelly explained, tears edging her voice.

"Hey, I'm fine, see? Quit worrying, it happens all the time," Josh comforted, placing a hand on her shoulder. Kelly hugged him in return.

"I was so worried about you. You're the only one who doesn't act funnytowards me around here," she said, her voice muffled by his T-shirt.

"What do you mean?" Josh asked, lightly disengaging them.

"They always are giving me sideways looks, and I always get the feeling they're nervous around me. Why would they do that?" Kelly whimpered.

"I'll talk to them. I guess it's just that they don't know you very well," Josh offered. Kelly seemed to instantly relax. 

"Thanks, bro. Now, how about some lunch? Isn't saline solution or whatever they're dripping into you kind of bland?" she grinned, gesturing to his IV. 

"Well, I can't leave until Yevshenko gives me a clean bill. Do you know where she is?" Josh replied.

"I bet I can find her," Kelly promised, getting up. She bounced out the door, feeling much better. Somehow, she knew that whatever the world threw at her, she could handle it now, just so long as her brother was there, and safe.

*****

The twins couldn't escape for another half hour. First Yevshenko had to give Josh a check-up, then they had a talk with Smith. 

"You owe me big time for the last few days, bro. I came up with a brilliant excuse for you being gone," Kelly teased as they left.

"Oh, and what would that be?" Josh shot back.

"That you were off visiting your poor, sick grandmother in Idaho," Kelly laughed. Josh instantly became serious. 

"You didn't really? Laura knows I..." the male blonde began in a worried voice.

"Brother dear, I was kidding. I told Laura and Pete that Dad volunteered you to go with a troop of boy scouts on a camping trip unexpectedly," Kelly smirked.

"That sounds like something Dad would do. Thanks, sis," Josh said, relived.

"So, where shall we go for lunch?" Kelly wondered aloud. 

"Hey, Berto. Hi, yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about not stopping in, but could you patch me through to Laura?" 

"Josh, what are you doing? That's a watch, not a phone," Kelly scolded, thinking he was playing around.

"Hey, Laura. Yeah, that camp trip was really fun. Listen, I was wondering, you want to meet me at Cafe Cafe? Oh, and ask Pete, Kelly's with me," Josh finished speaking with Laura and turned off the bio-link.

"Very cute," Kelly commented.

"One of the perks of working at N-tek. Call anyone, any time," Josh recited, amusement dancing across his face.

*****

Laura and Pete had already gotten a table by the time the twins arrived.

"Josh! Kelly! Hi!" Laura called, seeing the two teens exiting Josh's car. Laura ran up and hugged Josh, while Pete sauntered up and gave Kelly a bright smile. She returned it without much enthusiasm. 

"Hey," Josh greeted, setting Laura down.

"How'd you survive four days with a pack of kids?" Pete questioned with great interest.

"Lots of stamina, and the ability to toss them in the river," Josh replied with a wry grin. Kelly said something in a light scolding manner and lightly whapped him in the head. 

"Hey, I know! How about we all go rock climbing this weekend? I found this great spot to have a picnic," Kelly suggested. Pete and Laura agreed, and Josh was all for it. As they headed over to get a table, Josh and Laura joked about how close Pete and Kelly were walking. Or more like, how close Pete was walking to Kelly.

*****

As they walked to the car, Kelly wondered if she should bring up a subject that had been bothering her. It seemed kind of mean to drop it on Josh, but he was a part of it, and so were his partners.

"Josh, I kind of get the feeling that your partners don't really like me," she started on the way home, bringing up their earlier conversation.

"Kelly, I really don't want to tell you, but it's unfair that you don't even know why they're acting so cold to you," Josh began, eyes still on the road.

"So why? I haven't been being rude or anything, have I?" Kelly asked worriedly. That seemed to be her biggest problem, accidentally snubbing people.

"No, it's a little worse than that. You see, you showing up and having a kind of farfetched story makes them a little cautious. Add in that Dread's used a similar tactic a couple times to try to kidnap me, they're really worried. In their eyes, you could just be leading me into a trap," Josh sighed, knowing he would upset Kelly. However, she seemed to be taking it well.

"But why does Dread want you? I mean, he must know that he could never convince you to join him," Kelly wondered, confident in her brother's good heart.

"He doesn't want me as an agent, he wants to dissect me. You see, back in June, well, you remember that story I told you. Dread wants to know how I lived through that," Josh explained, inwardly wincing at the horrified look on Kelly's face.

"Wow. No human is that cruel, are they?" she murmured through her hand clapped across her mouth, looking slightly green.

"Kelly, I'm sorry, it's just..." Josh hastened to apologize.

"I know, you felt I had a right to know. I'm not mad that you told me, Josh. It's just kind of shocking," Kelly assured him.

"I understand. It a pretty bad jolt for me, and not just the transphasik energy blast," Josh intoned quietly.

"Look, now that I know, let's not talk about this, not now. It's just too much," Kelly asked after a second. Josh nodded, his eyes not moving from the road.

*****

In the coming weeks, whenever Max went to a conference with Rachel, Nez, or Berto, it almost always ended in a huge fight. All three agents, and Smith partially, were certain Kelly was a Dread agent in disguise. Max courageously defended his sister, insisting that she'd had more than one opportunity to take him. It stressed the group's tight bond of partnership and friendship. After each fight, Max would storm out, and invariably find Kelly. The two would talk, and Max could finally calm down. One day, Rachel called a meeting of the four N-tek agents, and Kelly, to, as she put it, "clear up any confusion."

"She just is trying to get you to admit you're a Dread agent or something," Josh grumbled as he drove them to N-tek. He transformed as he drove.

"Josh, just calm down. Maybe Rachel does just want to patch things up," Kelly suggested.

"Not likely. We may have talked about the arguments, but you didn't hear them," Max intoned angrily. Kelly laughed suddenly. 

"Oh, Josh! You're just so negative! You really need to calm down. Come on, just try to look on the brighter side," his sister pleaded.

*****

The three N-tek agents were waiting for the McGrath twins.

"Max, Kelly, hello," Rachel greeted coolly. Berto and Nez were already seated on one side of the table, along with Rachel. Max purposefully led Kelly to the side closest to the door. He sat down and folded his arms. His sister had to suppress a giggle at his childishness. Rachel let out a sigh of exasperation.

"Look, I wanted you to come down here so we could talk this out as mature adults, not so you could sit there and pout," Rachel snapped. Max whirled out of his seat.

"You're setting a great example of maturity! All of you, have any of you really even tried to get to know Kelly?! Or are you just basing your accusations on the past?" he snapped. Berto looked shocked and hurt. Nez and Kelly stood up, ready to hold Rachel and Max back. Kelly was touched by her brother's protectiveness, even though it seemed to be straining more than a few relationships. She shot Berto an apologetic look. If anything, she knew that he was the peace-maker among Team Steel. The girl wondered how her brother and Berto were able to make it through as many of these fights as she knew they had. She stepped in front of Max.

"Okay, let's not turn this into a big, violent, bloodshed thing. I really hate that stuff," Kelly tried to break up the imminent fight the only way she knew how. Telling jokes, even if the situation didn't call for one.

"Yeah, come on, you two. We're here to talk," Berto interjected. Kelly felt a pang of pity for him. Though he had been cautious, he hadn't been outright cold like Rachel. Besides, she liked him, very much. She got the feeling that Berto was kind of submissive. With a partner like Rachel, she didn't blame him. After several minutes of negotiation, Rachel and Max were persuaded to sit down, while Kelly and Nez managed the conversation.

"Okay, now," Kelly mused, from her place sitting in the middle of the table. 

"According to Max, you are acting funny towards me `cause you think I might be a Dread agent in disguise, right?" she asked, looking at the three N-tek agents.

"Well, it's more like we're being...cautious," Berto tried to explain.

"I seem to be hearing that a lot. How can you guys work while being `cautious' all the time? It must put a big strain on your systems," Kelly observed. 

"We're not this careful all the time. Only when an enemy may be infiltrating our security," Rachel muttered. That set Max off.

"`Careful?!' You aren't being careful, you're being out and out rude! Kelly is trying to be friendly, and you keep pushing her away!" he growled. In a flash, Kelly slid across the table.

"Josh, you're not helping," she warned in a high "you're in trouble now" tone. In fact, it didn't help. Max and Rachel started trading insults, until Nez clapped one hand over Rachel's mouth, and Kelly put Max's foot in his mouth, literally. Well, her foot across his mouth, anyway. The two peacemakers were busy struggling with their charges, so Berto tried to take charge.

"Okay, why are we acting like two year olds?" he asked, addressing the whole group. No one could come up with a good excuse, or any excuse for that matter.

"Well, then, let's stop acting like that," Berto suggested reasonably. This appeared to agree with everyone. Nez released Rachel, and Kelly took her foot off of Max's mouth.

"Let's try that again," Berto sighed. 

"I just want to know one thing..." Max began. He leaned back as Kelly held her foot ready to silence him again.

"Chill, sis. I just want to know if there's any way Kelly can convince you that's she's not a Dread agent," Max asked meekly. Kelly calmly withdrew her foot. 

"Well..." Rachel began. Smith suddenly appeared, stopping all the conversation. 

"I'm sorry if I interrupted anything, but I need you four," he stated, indicating the four N-tek agents, "to come with me for a mission briefing. I'm sorry, Kelly," he finished. Kelly sighed and crossed her arms. One of the worst things was not getting to go with the others on missions. She felt she was perfectly capable of going along. Of course, both Smith and Josh firmly refused to let her go. As the agents filed out, she remained, thinking about how she could tag along. Then it hit her. They always took Max's car. She ran out to the car and checked it for any places to hide. There was a gap just her size in the trunk, even with the missiles. There were several air holes, it seemed like the perfect place. She rushed to wait near the door. 

*****

At the end of the mission briefing, Max was silent for a moment.

"So all we have to do is get in there and find the codes?" Max asked, trying to sum up the mission. Smith nodded.

"Easy enough," Max grinned. The others rolled their eyes.

"Come on, superboy, let's go," Nez sighed, standing. Rachel and Berto mimicked him, while Max fairly bounced out of his seat. 

"Okay, so the way I see it, we can get in this way..." a male, teen-sounding voice came down the hallway.

Kelly looked up, hearing Max's voice. She turned and rushed to the car, slipping into the small space she had located. In reality, it was a touch more cramped than she expected.

"Okay Max, we'll keep that in mind," Rachel promised. They piled into the car. Kelly grinned to herself, feeling the car start.

*****

In the end, the four agents decided to use Max's idea of getting in through a window. Max parked the N-tek issue car several hundred feet from the base. They scrambled out, and started for the base. Kelly gave them a few minutes, then crawled out of hiding. She followed their footprints in the soft mud to the Dread base. Here, she found a part of the fence ripped open.

"Thank you for not covering your tracks," Kelly muttered to herself, dipping under the fence. She tiptoed across the grass, heading for the still pried open window. She had to twist herself quite a bit to get through, and wondered how Josh, who was much more muscular, could ever have gotten through. To her amusement, the four agents had left their muddy footprints on the floor, leading out the door. Kelly almost laughed as she followed their tracks. She followed the prints to a door, and heard voices, which sounded like her brother and his partners. Without a second thought, she turned and headed into the first room she came to. As expected, there was a grate leading into the vents. She reached up and felt around until she found the screws holding it up. With a few quick twists of the screwdriver hidden in her pocket, Kelly had the grate resting on the table she had been standing on. She gripped the edges of the opening, and was about to pull herself up, when she realized that the room she was in was a weapons storage room. 

"Cool," the tagalong teenager grinned, dropping back to the floor and picking up a sort of quiver, stuffing four electro-staffs into it and slinging it on her back.

"Now, that's better," she smiled, hopping back up on the table and slipping into the duct. She navigated the paths until she found the room her brother was in. The four agents were crowded around a computer, and Berto was downloading stuff. After watching for a few minutes, Kelly grew edgy and left them, scurrying off to spend the time figuring out the paths, having the feeling she would need it later.

*****

The computer bleeped softly, if not cheerily as it copied the files, then deleted them from the data base.

"And that's the last of it," Berto said with satisfaction, removing the disk and placing it in a pocket.

"Now, let's get out of here," Max decided, turning to the door. As the four stepped from the room, a cluster of Dread guards appeared at the end of the hallway. One of them shouted something, and they rushed the N-tek agents.

"Run!" Nez shouted, shoving everyone down the hall. They took off, racing down the hallway.

"Huh?" Kelly muttered, hearing the commotion. She scampered to a grate, and looked out in time to see her brother, flanked by the other three agents, dash by followed closely by a pack of Dread guards.

"Finally, something interesting," she grinned, taking off down the vents, somehow having an idea of where they were going. Must have been twin perception.

*****

Max, Rachel, Berto, and Nez ran out onto a bridge made of grating, connecting their side of the building with the other. The guards were still behind them, and as they reached near the center, another group appeared at the other end.

"What do we do now?" Berto panted. Max glanced over the side. Rachel placed her hand on his shoulder, pulling him away from the railing.

"Don't even think about," she warned.

"It's too far anyway, and all that's down there are Dread's giant bucket of max-probes," Max replied.

"We'll have to fight them," Nez decided, moving into a fighting stance. Rachel and Max imitated him, and Berto as well, though not as confidently as the others. Max looked around. There were roughly eight guards at either side of them, making the odds 16:4 in Dread's favor. And the guards had those stupid electro-sticks. Oh, well. If they went down, they'd go down fighting. 

"Hey, up here!" a female voice called. Everyone turned towards the source of the voice. The speaker was a teenage girl with blond hair, dressed in a pair of jeans and a black T-shirt, a quiver of some sort peeking from behind her shoulder. She stood upon a duct, holding a rope.

"N-tek agents, heads up!" she yelled, jumping off her perch. Clutching the rope, she bore down upon the group. With a thud, she landed, taking out a couple guards in the process. Max gasped, it was Kelly.

"Here, I think these'll help," she grinned, removing the four electro-sticks from the quiver on her back. As she handed them to the N-tek agents, the rope she'd been holding slipped from her grip, catching on the railing.

"Kelly, how'd you get here?" Max demanded as he slammed a guard to the ground.

"I followed you four," she shrugged, smashing her palm into an attacking agent's chin.

"Kelly, I told you before. This stuff's too dangerous," Max scolded, stabbing at a guard with his fist. 

"Why? Jake, Berto, and Rachel aren't super powered," Kelly retorted, ducking a punch and driving her fist into the attacker's stomach.

"Yeah, but they have special training," Max argued, sticking out his foot and watching the guard coming at him flip over it. Rachel kicked a guard and turned to them.

"Will you two stop arguing until after the mission? We've got more pressing concerns right now," she snapped. Max and Kelly turned to face her.

"We are not fighting!" they yelled simultaneously. Nez held back a chuckle as he snap-kicked a guard. One guard who had been smacked around and was on the verge of unconsciousness shakily raised his laser and fired at Kelly. The shot barely missed her temple. With a shriek, she stumbled back, right over the edge. Her arms flailed out, trying to grab anything she could. Her fingers brushed the rope, and she gripped it. It easily slipped from it's catch under her weight, sending Kelly sailing out over the vat of max-probes.

"Yiiiii!" she yelped, wrapping herself around the rope. She was in too much shock to do anything but hang on as the rope swung back and forth, slowly coming to a stop right above one of the vats.

"I wanna get down!" Kelly screamed, hugging the rope. Several laser blasts tore past her, one of them hitting the rope, jolting her.

"Not like that!" the blond teen yelled at them. 

"Kelly, hang on!" Max shouted at her.

"What do you think I'm doing?!" she yelled back. More shots ripped at the rope, tearing more threads.

"Josh, I need a little help over here!" Kelly shouted at her brother.

"What am I supposed to do?" Max snapped in a yell at her, kicking a guard.

"Try using that chain!" Kelly and Berto loudly suggested. Max nodded and grabbed the chain, swinging at Kelly.

"Kel, grab on!" he shouted, holding out his hand. Kelly reached, but they passed centimeters apart.

"Good going, bro," Kelly commented dryly, watching as he swung past, inciting a glare from her brother.

"I'm doing the best I can!" he snapped.

"Yiiii!" Kelly squealed as the rope took another shot. Only about a fourth of the rope remained. Kelly glanced around wildly. Max was trying to gain more momentum to try saving her again. Rachel, Berto, and Nez were still busy dealing with guards, some of whom were shooting at her. Kelly winced as more strands died.

"Any time now, Josh," she mumbled under her breath. A laser shot rushed at the rope. It cut cleanly through the last strands.

"Yiiiiii!" Kelly wailed, her stomach sinking along with her body, heading towards the vat below.

"Kelly!" Max screamed, watching as she disappeared into the green liquid. Kelly blinked in the vat, and instantly regretted it. Josh had told her how painful having the probes enter his body had been, and now she knew he wasn't lying. Her eyes felt as if they were on fire. She opened her mouth to scream, and got a mouthful of probes instead. Frantically, she pushed towards the surface. Her hand broke through, and she groped around for something to grab onto. A hand closed around hers, and Kelly felt herself being pulled from the thick liquid. A pair of arms circled her, and seconds later, she was being laid down on something hard. She blinked rapidly, trying to clear her vision. She vaguely made out Max hovering above her, and the others nearby.

"Josh?" she gasped, spitting greenish suspension fluid as she spoke.

"Yeah?" he asked gently.

"I'm sorry," she choked, collapsing in a dead faint. Max had a brief moment of panic, then remembered that she wasn't in danger yet. He hugged her tighter in his arms, then turned to the nearest fellow agent, Rachel.

"We've got to get out of here," he stated.

"I know, I'll get Berto and Jake. You head out," Rachel ordered. Max nodded and rushed for the exit.

"Hang on, Kel. You'll be fine," he breathed. He made record speed to the car, setting Kelly in the back seat. Rachel, Nez, and Berto were suddenly behind him. 

"Someone else better drive," Max stated quickly, jumping in the back seat. Nez volunteered, and they piled in.

*****

Smith had a strange sense of deja vu, looking down at Kelly, lying sound asleep in a bed at the med lab. He recalled seeing Josh the same way. 

"Will she be all right?" he asked Yevshenko.

"I'm not sure. The only chance she has is being injected with max probes, then the transphasik treatment," the doctor replied. Smith nodded, and Kelly was wheeled down to the generator, where Max was just coming out.

"Kelly!" Max exclaimed, zipping over to the stretcher. He squeezed her hand tightly. Rachel gently pulled him away so they could take Kelly in. Max insisted on watching. The four agents who had gone on the mission were crowded into a viewing room, along with Smith and Mairot. Max turned to Rachel.

"Still think she's a Dread operative?" he asked, not even a touch of smuggness in his voice.

"Not any more. And Max?" Rachel replied, turning to match his stare.

"Yeah?" the teenager responded.

"I'm sorry about being so suspicious, and rude, to both you and Kelly," Rachel apologized.

"I should apologize to you too. Even with you shunning Kelly, I still had no right to be saying that stuff to you or Jake or Berto," Max replied. _Especially Berto,_ he thought sadly. 

*****

Kelly came out of the generator still asleep. She had a better chance, since she had been put in the same day she was exposed to the probes, unlike Josh, who spent days fighting the tiny machines with his normal immune system. Much to Josh's chagrin, she stayed asleep for several hours.

"Don't be so impatient. You were out for most of the day," Smith lightly scolded him. Josh grinned at him, then turned back to his sister.

"Kelly, come on, wake up," he pleaded quietly. 

*****

Several days later, Kelly was back up to full strength, or more like ten times that. Josh spent some time to sort of lay down the rules about how far she could push her power's limits. Kelly was rather amused by how protective he was.

"Josh, I can take care of myself. Just wait and see," she told him one day. Being around N-tek was actually fun now that she had proven herself to be nothing more than Josh's sister, who had saved four N-tek agents. Then there was the idea rolling around in her head ever since the accident. 

"Hey, Josh, could you tell me what you said to Dad when you became an N-tek agent?" she asked innocently one day. Josh grinned and told her exactly what he had said and done, and what Smith had said in return.

"Very interesting," Kelly murmured under her breath as he finished.

*****

Kelly opened the door to Smith's office, and stepped in. Josh was standing near the desk, talking to his father. Both looked up when she entered.

"Hi, Kelly," Josh greeted with a wave. 

"Hello, Kelly. Is something wrong?" Smith added. Kelly shook her head.

"Look, I've been thinking. Can I join N-tek? The real one?" she asked, coming closer.

"Absolutely not," Smith replied sternly.

"No way, Kelly," Josh chimed in, just as firm. Kelly looked indignant. 

"Dad, Josh," she began in a whining tone, placing her hands on her hips. 

"No. It's too dangerous, and..." Smith snapped.

"Don't even think about saying I'm too young," Kelly cut him off.

"Kelly, it is dangerous. You've seen how many times I come in half dead. Do you really want to spent your life doing this?" Josh added, still agruing, even though he knew the outcome.

"Yes, actually, I do. Besides, with two of us, it would be less dangerous," Kelly argued.

"Yeah, but it also makes one more person Dread can kidnap," Josh replied.

"And what about Kelly McGrath? You've seen how hard it is for Josh," Smith added, knowing that remark would probably trigger the same as it had with Josh. True enough, Kelly looked down at the ground, as if contemplating his remark. She was really running through what Josh had said, making sure she would get it right. After all, they were twins. Shouldn't they act alike?

"Then Kelly McGrath's out of the picture," she stated, looking up. She passed her hand over her face, transforming as she did so. "The name is Maxy Steel," she finished, giving both males a hard glare. Smith looked surprised, and Josh was trying not to fall over laughing. Kelly now looked very like Max, right down to the bangs, only in female version, her long hair pulled into a ponytail. Josh couldn't take it anymore. He burst out laughing, one hand holding his side, the other braced against the desk.

"What's so funny?" Maxy demanded, crossing her arms.

"Oh, come on Kel. `Maxy Steel?' Real original, sis," he chuckled.

"Hey, it's the best I could come up with on such short notice," she snapped, a smile creeping across her face.

*****

Smith and Josh finally agreed, and Maxy was taken to be properly prepared. Getting the bio-link, adjusting the TSO room to accommodate two Steels, and informing the other agents. And getting her equipment, of course. Max had Hawk, so Maxy's identical jet was called Crane. The only change was an "X2" after the N-tek thumbs up. With cars, Maxy's version of Max's car Shadow was a white/green vehicle she called Star. Berto looked like he wasn't really looking forward to double duty, and Rachel and Nez mimicked his expression to the next level. Dealing with just Max was hard enough, now his super-charged _twin_ sister as well?

  
  


_Look for the sequel to this, "Double the Fun," coming soon!_

-Maxy Steel


	2. Double The Fun

_General disclaimer: The TV show Max Steel is not mine, though I really wish it was. It belongs to a number of companies whose names escape my memory at the moment, but my name wasn't on that list, if I recall. Kelly McGrath/Maxy Steel is my character, and I will set my corgi-beagle on you if you use her name or her character without my permission. Enough of that, on with the story!_

  


**DOUBLE THE FUN**

**BY:**

**Maxy Steel**

  


**Timeline: Three months after the end of "Long Lost Twin Sister"**

  


Rachel, Max, Maxy, Nez and Berto were in the training room, where Rachel was unsuccessfully trying to break up a sparring match between Max and his sister. The blond senior agent, irritated by the twins' constant hyperactivity, had made the mistake of suggesting that the two wear themselves out in a knock out karate match. 

"Come on you two! Stop! We've got other training issues to cover!" she yelled at them over their fight cries. If either heard, they chose to ignore. Berto came over and watched the three of them. He had a hard time not laughing, listening to the older agent try to stop the contenders.

"Rachel, you should have known that this would happen," he chided with a grin. 

"Perhaps I shouldn't have said 'knock out,'" the young woman mused thoughtfully. 

"That's an understatement. Well, at least they'll be easier to deal with when they're done," Nez observed optimistically, coming over as well. _I think they were both at full strength when they started. This could take hours,_ Berto thought, watching his partners. Max ducked to avoid a kick to the head, and tried sweep Maxy's feet out from under her. She returned the favor, striking her mark. He didn't fall, or waver noticeably.

"This is a lost cause. Let's finish our training, maybe they'll have worn themselves out by then," the youngest agent suggested. Rachel and Nez nodded in agreement, and moved off to work on defense drills. 

*****

The three lost track of time, and almost an hour had passed by the time they had finished a part of their training, and it occurred to the other three members of Team Steel to check on the sparring brother-sister team. Amazingly, they were still at it, and showing no signs of slowing. Rachel sighed, and clapped a hand to her head, shaking it at the same time.

"What round is this?" Jake called, trying not to laugh. Max paused long enough to hold up one hand, showing the number one, before he flipped to avoid a low kick from his sister. Berto chuckled quietly.

"Amazing how long these brother-sister fights can last," he muttered under his breath. Maxy picked up the remark, flipped sharply, and landed in front of him.

"Who says we're fighting?" she demanded playfully, leaning in to give him a light punch in the shoulder. Max flipped and landed beside her. She clapped her hands sarcastically, smiling. He grinned, and bowed, then checked his watch. The look on his face went rapidly from cheerful to panicked.

"Uh, Kel? We're supposed to meet with Laura and Pete in half an hour. Remember that?" he prompted. She giggled, and transformed. 

"Of course I knew that. But it's kind of hard to check the watch when I'm being kicked at," she chuckled, tapping her own wrist gear as her brother changed as well. With a quick wave to the others, the twins were out the door.

As luck would have it, they managed to get there in time, both dressed and ready. Pete and Laura were there already, and Laura had a basket sitting next to her. Laura and Josh greeted with a hug, Kelly gave Pete a cautiously friendly one, since both had finally admitted that they liked each other, though the female part of the equation insisted it was just friendship. In Pete's case, it appared that he hoped it could be more. This set him up for an over-dose of teasing from Josh, which he accepted on the hope that it would make Kelly like him better.

"Come on, you two," Josh called in a childish voice to Pete and Laura, who were lagging behind. His blond female counter-part chuckled a little, and rolled her eyes. 

"Hey, we don't jump out of planes for a living, or whatever you two do," Pete retorted smartly. Both McGrath twins froze in surprise at how close he'd been, until Kelly laughed, and backed up to hike with them. 

"Just how much farther is this place, anyway?" Laura asked, panting slightly. 

"Just over that next ridge. At this pace, we should still get there by four," Kelly replied. She was right. They were there a little after three-thirty, actually. The girls rolled out the blanket and set out the food while the guys _tried_ to impress them with acrobatic feats. Josh had just sprang from a tree, and gotten into the air for an impressive flying somersault, when... 

"Josh, lunch is ready! Stop fooling around!" Kelly called to him, a plate of sandwiches in one hand, the other resting on her hip, as she tried to look indignate. Of course, she failed miserably. 

"Yahhhh!" Josh yelled back as he "stumbled" in midair and fell, crashing into Pete. Josh's sister laughed, watching the two of them fight. At last, Pete and Josh, both covered in dirt and dust, came and sat down. Kelly suppressed another gale of laughter, pressing her palm tightly across her face. 

"Real mature of you, guys," Laura grinned. Neither of the boys said anything, and both grabbed some chips. The girls wisely chose not to make any more comments. 

*****

An hour later, they finished, and started back, taking a slightly more dangerous route, only because it was shorter. Besides, the McGraths at least loved the adrenaline causing slopes. 

"I think you two wanted to take this path for the steep ledges, not because it's a shortcut," Laura grumbled, tripping on a rock. Josh reached back and grabbed her arm to ensure that she wouldn't fall.

"You're right, but it will get us back sooner, I promise," Kelly replied, nimbly darting around a dip. Pete tried to imitate her action, and tripped instead, falling over the edge of the narrow ledge. 

"Pete!" everyone cried, watching as he tumbled down, hitting several small ledges. Kelly had a rope out, and threw it to Josh. 

"Tie it to something!" she ordered, snapping the clip onto her belt. Josh had barely gotten it secured around a rock before she jumped. 

"Kelly, are you nuts?!" Laura shouted at the teen. Kelly expertly bounced from ledge to ledge, down to the level where Pete had landed, a good fifteen feet or so down. As she landed lightly beside him, she shook her head. 

"Pete, you're so clumsy," she scolded, kneeling beside him. Pete was still awake, and not that badly beaten up, surprisingly. 

"That hurt," he complained. Kelly had to laugh as she picked him up, her arm circling around his chest. 

"Hey, Josh! You think you could pull us up?" she called up at her brother. 

"Give me a second," he replied, grabbing the rope. He planted his feet, and slowly tugged the rope, dragging the two of them up. 

"Pete, you all right?" Josh asked, slightly winded from his part in the rescue. 

"Yeah, just a headache," Pete replied, wiping some sweat from his face. 

"Serves you right. You're not as agile as I am," Kelly scolded, gracefully spinning around and pirouetting, then bowed, earning amused looks from the others. 

"Let's get home before something else happens," Laura sighed, standing. Pete stood a little shakily, and Kelly and Josh hopped up, both ready to catch him if he tried to fall again. 

Amazingly, no other accidents happened on the way back, just Pete was still dizzy when they reached the cars. 

"Pete, maybe you should go to the hospital. You hit your head pretty hard," Laura suggested intelligently.

"I'm okay," Pete insisted, in typical male macho fashion. Kelly firmly steered him to the passenger's side of his car. 

"_I'll_ drive you home. I'm not risking you passing out at the wheel," she told him. Pete started to protest, but stopped after a hard look from the shorter, but fairly menacing female.

*****

Kelly looked thoughtful on the drive home. Josh thought she was being quieter because of the scare from Pete's minor accident, but her words said otherwise.

"You know, we should do that more often," Kelly mused as her brother drove. 

"You think?" Josh asked, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Yeah, but you know? It's been so long since we did something, you know, just the two of us," the sister added. 

"What are you talking about? Since you joined N-tek, we've hardly been out of each other's sight for more than a few minutes at a time," the blonde teenager replied. 

"But all of that's missions! Well, and meets with Pete and Laura," Kelly complained. "Hey, I know! Let's go on that trail in the forest tomorrow! Just the two of us," she suggested excitedly. 

"That would be fun, so long as we don't have anything planned. We'll have to ask Dad," Josh agreed. Kelly launched into an equipment plan, listing everything they would need, and a few things they probably wouldn't, like parachutes. Josh rolled his eyes. 

*****

The next day, the two hopeful teens stood in front of their adoptive father's desk, waiting for his approval about their plan.

"Yes, you two can go. Just remember to keep your bio-links on. You know how it is," Smith finally gave them permission. 

"Finally, a day to go relax! No missions, nothing," Kelly sighed happily as they headed out to the car. They hadn't brought the parachutes.

"Come on, it's not that bad. Admit it, you love being a secret agent," Josh chided, dropping his pack, in typical male fashion, unceremoniously into the back seat. Kelly placed her pack in only slightly more gently than her brother, then jumped in the passenger's seat. Josh stationed himself in the driver's seat.

"You are way too hyper," Josh sighed at his sister as he started the car. Kelly was happily bouncing up and down on the seat, eager to leave. 

"You better believe it!" she giggled. Josh rolled his eyes heavenward, and pulled out of the parking space. 

Half an hour later, Josh parked the car on the rough gravel. Small rocks pinged against the sides of the car, while others crunched under the tires.

"Well, here we are," Josh announced. Kelly hopped over the side of her door, and looking up. 

"Wow, it's so beautiful," she breathed, never taking her eyes off the trees as she pulled on her back pack. 

"You're going to get a crick in your neck, looking up all the time," Josh jokingly warned, shouldering his own bag. Kelly giggled, and took off down the first path. Josh jogged a short distance to catch up and walked beside her. They began to talk, mostly about issues in their lives that they hadn't covered before. 

"So, you started snowboarding when you were ten?" Kelly asked incredulously. 

"Yeah," Josh replied proudly. His female counter-part laughed. 

"I started surfing when I was eight!" she exclaimed triumphantly, one hand on her hip, looking defiant. 

"I've been surfing since I was seven," Josh added smugly. Kelly playfully snorted and shoved him. 

"Oh yeah, McGrath? You may have started the agent training stuff a little sooner than me, but I can still take you any day of the week!" she grinned. 

"Is that a challenge?" Josh quieried mockingly, looking snootily down his nose at his shorter sibling. She put her hands on her hips defiantly. 

"You bet it is!" Kelly returned, dropping her pack. Josh did the same, and they engaged in a playful fight, throwing fake kicks and light punches, more to lose some of the energy building up. The male tenager loved having his sister around. Doing stuff like this was a fun way to burn off excess energy, and it was impossible to do this stuff with Rachel, he wasn't really sure why. Maybe because she was older, and more or less his "trainer." And Berto didn't have the endurance to go for more than a few minutes.

After maybe ten minutes, Josh gave in, they picked up their gear and continued on, both feeling a little more relaxed.

"We really should get Berto, Rachel, and Jake to come on a hike one of these days," Kelly suggested. 

"It'll be pretty hard, since we've all got different days off," Josh replied, but Kelly was, as usual, unfazed. 

"We'll figure it out. I mean, there's no way those three could stay cooped up at N-tek all the time, right?" Kelly assured optimistically. 

"You'd be surprised," Josh chuckled, a hint of seriousness in his tone. His twin shot him a playfully horrified look.

"You're not serious," she gasped mockingly. They both laughed, and turned down a new path. The girl promptly smashed into the leader of another group of hikers, sending both herself and the guy she'd hit to the ground. 

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Kelly cried in surprise, scooting back a little to avoid the man's feet as he scarmbled back as well. 

"Yeah, sorry, we weren't watching where we were going," Josh added, helping Kelly up. The hiker she'd knocked down was already up. They said nothing. Josh and Kelly studied them in the uncomfortable silence. There were five, and all wore black T-shirts, black jeans, and dark sunglasses. Suddenly, two of the men rushed forward, seizing Kelly by either arm, and slamming her back first up against a thick tree, while the other three tackled Josh. 

"Hey, let go of me!" the female agent shouted, struggling. The men wasted no time. They soon had her wrists bound with thick rope, tied so her wrists were on opposite sides of the wide tree trunk. She could have gotten through that in a second, but then the men clamped handcuffs of some sort around her wrists, firmly securing her to the tree. Meanwhile, the other three had gotten Josh pinned to the ground, and had gotten his wrists secured with the same cuffs Kelly was tied with. The two who had attacked her went to help control the struggling teenager, and between the five of them, they managed to drag Josh away, leaving Kelly still bound to the tree. Instead of her usual panic, the young woman was very calm. She tested the material she was tied with, and turned her hand so she could feel it. First the thick rope, which, while strong, wouldn't be a match for her. It was the metal handcuffs that she had the problem with. It was a thick, two inch diameter rope-like iron cord, with cuffs of the same material at either end. No way to snap it. 

"Berto. Berto, are you there? I need a little help here," she grumbled, self-centered anger that she hadn't been able to help her brother edging her voice. After a short time, a reply came. 

"Maxy? What's up?" the young man's voice asked.

"Let's see, I'm tied to a tree, and a bunch of weirdos ran off with Josh. Does that sum it up?" the blonde replied sarcastically, and instantly felt bad. _Idiot, you're trying to get him to like you. That's not gonna help,_ she told herself.

"We really need to have a talk about your attitude, Maxy," Berto stated in return. 

"We can talk about that later. Right now, I need to get free so I can help Josh," the teen replied. 

"Okay, let's see...any idea what the cuffs are made of?" 

"Something that's too strong for me to snap. Just send _Crane,_ and aim the laser at the ropes," Kelly suggested. Berto sheepishly commanded _Crane_ to fly to her location, wondering why he hadn't thought of that before. The screen flipped to _Crane's_ veiw, and he aimed the prescision laser at the ropes on the opposite side of Kelly's body. He fired, and slowly directed the beam up. It burned quickly through the ropes, but it took a long time for the laser to cut through the metal bind. 

"Thanks, Berto," Kelly sighed, flexing her sore limbs and rubbing the back of her head. _Crane_ swung around to float before her, and she jumped in. 

"Where's that laser pen thingy?" she muttered, digging through some gadgets in a metal box beside her chair. 

"Try your belt pouch," Berto suggested dryly, glad to know something she didn't. 

"We need to work on _your_ attitude, Berto dear," Kelly smirked, pulling the laser from it's place on her belt. She directed the beam into the lock of her left cuff, and fired. Seconds later, the bind dropped to the floor, the lock melted. She repeated the action for the right cuff, and rubbed her sore wrists. Then, she whipped out her credit-card shaped scanner, and checked it. 

"Berto, what's up near Mount Conlith?" she asked absently after a moment. 

"A Dread base, I think," Berto replied hesitantly, unsure. 

"Josh's signal is heading in that direction," Kelly stated, transforming into Maxy. She fired up _Crane,_ and took off, locking the jet's tracer onto Josh's college ring signal. 

*****

Shortly after she was freed from the tree, the Dread base Berto had mentioned came into Maxy's view.

"Dread knows where to build a base," Maxy commented as she parked _Crane,_ placing the jet in slealth mode. The tall, imposing concrete building was surrounded by foliage a nature lover would adore. The teenaged girl barely looked around, her attention more focused on finding a way inside. A quick walk around the building located a partially open window, and Maxy had it fully open and was inside within two minutes. She immediately found a duct entrance, remembering that it was the best place to go if one wanted full access to all rooms, without being seen. She began scrabbling along the dark tunnels, relying mostly on her sense of touch, direction, and the weird "bond" she assumed all twins shared, using it to get an idea of where her brother might be. As an added precaution, Maxy checked the scanner when she found a light source. 

*****

Berto heard the TSO room door open, but didn't look up like he usually did, as he was busy waiting for word from Maxy. Footsteps sounded across the floor, coming to a stop behind his chair. A chill swept through the teen, and Berto started to turn around. A fist connected with the right side of his skull. 

"Unh!" the young N-tek agent groaned, his head thudding against the console, a sharp edge digging a bleeding cut into the side of his head. The boy's attacker grabbed his motionless form, and hauled him over to the closet. Using some tape he'd found, the stranger bound and gagged the unconcious teenager, and left him in the closet. The man shut the door, and hid, waiting for his next victim. 

Rachel, oblivious to the attacker, walked into the room, wanting an update on her younger partners.

"Berto, have you heard from Maxy yet?" Rachel didn't look up from the papers she was holding as she stepped into the room. Nothing ever changed, she didn't worry about tripping.

"Berto, are you in here?" she called, looking up and glancing around. As she came near the main console, Rachel noticed a spray of red decorating the edge of the console. Carefully, she touched it, and pulled her hand back. A coppery scent emitted from the substance. Startled and concerned, Rachel looked around. A thin trail of red traced a path to the closet. The female N-tek agent moved to the door, and closed her hand around the knob. Slowly, she turned the handle and pulled open the door. Berto lay inside, facedown and knocked out, if not possibly dead. 

"Berto!" Rachel gasped in a whisper, kneeling next to him. She checked him for signs of life, and found them. She started to unroll the duct tape binding his wrists behind his back. She sensed the figure looming behind her, microseconds before a pair of hands grabbed her, digging harshly into her shoulders. The blonde agent had no time to cry out before she was flung back, hitting the side of the console with her head, leaving a big dent. With a low groan, she lost consciousness. The man bound and gagged her, then shoved the N-tek agent behind some of the large console equipment, closed the door, and waited for the last agent he had been ordered to take out.

*****

Maxy glanced through another gap, sighing in exasperation. She pulled out her scanner and checked it again, finding at he should be down the hall to the left. She crawled to the specified room, and peered down. It was a cell, and Max was inside. Maxy blinked, the infared scanner in her eye activating. Through it, she could see the special tracer in his college ring. With a quick pull, she ripped up the vent cover and dropped into the small room. Luckily, no guards were around. 

"Josh! Wake up!" she hissed, shaking his shoulder. The teen blinked, groaned, and sat up, looking around groggily. 

"Huh? Where am I? Kelly?" he slurred, putting a hand to his forehead. 

"You're in one of Dread's bases, near Mount Conlith," Maxy explained, earning a blank stare from her brother. His eyes were clouded with confusion.

"Conlith? We were in the forest," he stated, none to steadily. His sister grabbed his arms, adjusting to pull him.

"I'll explain on the way. Right now, we need to get out of here," she told him, dragging her brother to his feet. He leaned against the wall, trying to clear his mind. She stepped over to the door, and kicked it open. Alarms blared, startling the semi-coherent teenager into full awareness. 

"What are you doing?!" the male twin demanded. 

"Waking you up," Maxy replied, a smile playing across her face. 

"Okay, I'm awake. Now what?" her brother snapped. 

"We kick a little Dread guard butt," the girl grinned, excitedly. Within a few seconds, Dread guards appeared. 

"We're gonna have a talk about your tactics, sis," Max told her as they fell into fighting positions. 

"What's wrong with my tactics?" Maxy whined as they started fending off the attacking guards. 

"A keyword is stealth. We're trying to not draw attention to ourselves," Max replied, tossing a guard. 

"Oh, come on, brother. It worked, right?" Maxy said in a slightly higher, exasperated tone as they finished with the guards. They dashed for the warehouse, dodging the expected attempts at stopping them from the remaining guards. Maxy hopped up on a platform while Max punched the "up" button, and sprang on the platform as it rose. The pair rushed away the second they reached the top, and moved out of the comm. secure range. 

"Berto, you there?" Max breathed into his speaker. No response, the teen tried again after a moment. 

"Berto, I know you're there. Come in," Maxy snapped into her own speaker. Still, no reply from base. 

"I don't like this? Where's Berto?" Maxy stated both agent's thoughts. 

"We need to get back. There must be some reason why he's not answering, maybe an emergency came up," Max decided. 

"I don't see why they'd have called him away. He was waiting for word from me," Maxy argued. 

"All the same, we need to get back. Maybe something's going on," Max replied, signaling _Hawk._ With a disgruntled sigh, Maxy called for _Crane,_ and within a short time, both agent's were on their way to base. 

"Shouldn't we contact base?" Maxy asked over her radio. She looked to her brother to see his response. The two planes were angled, admittedly rather awkwardly, so the pilots could see each other as they flew. Max shook his head. 

"No, Dread can pick up that signal. If there are problems, we don't need Dread knowing," Max replied. 

"All right, but I really hope you know what you're doing," Maxy warned. 

*****

The stranger dropped Nez, unconscious and bound, in the middle of the room, pausing to take a breath. The radio at his hip beeped. 

"Yes," he intoned stonily, holding the object to his mouth. 

"Steel's escaped, apparently with the assistance of his partner," Dread's voice filtered through the tiny communicator. 

"What partner? I have all three here," the stranger replied, with his first hint of confusion. 

"Not any of those three. It was his fourth partner, the sister, I believe," Dread explained. The man let out a angry sigh.

"You said the sister was taken care of," he snapped. 

"It's changed. One of the others must have helped her. But that's beside the point. Both Steels are on their way, leave now. I don't want them finding out about you until it's convenient for us," Dread ordered. The intruder agreed, and clicked the radio off, tucking back into the loop on his belt. He turned and left, stepping over Nez as he did. 

Maxy was half paying attention to the sky, and half to the road, when she spotted the car.

"Josh, did you see that?" Maxy asked, indicating the road. 

"See what?" Max inquired, looking down. 

"I could have sworn I just saw a car go by with, uh, _you,_ driving," Maxy shrugged. 

"You need to have your eyes checked," Max chuckled. 

"Hey!" Maxy objected angrily, inciting more laughter from her brother. 

_Hawk_ and _Crane_ touched down in N-tek's hanger shortly after. The twin pilots hopped out of their vehicles, and looked around the room. None of the vehicles their teammates used were missing.

"No one's around. This is strange," Maxy observed as they entered. 

"It's not that weird. Maybe everyone's just really busy," Max suggested reasonably. They turned down paths and corridors until they found the TSO room. They met no people, which confused Maxy.

"Hey, maybe Berto's back," Max grinned, typing in his code. The door slid open. 

"Nez!" Maxy squealed, seeing her fellow agent laying on the floor. She and Max sprinted to his side. Max pulled the tape off his face, and ripped at the tape around his wrists. 

"Is he...dead?" Maxy gasped frantically. Max lowered his head the Nez's chest. A slow, steady, breathing pattern and heartbeat. 

"He'll be fine," Max assured, yanking at the tape around the agent's ankles. 

"What should we do?" the female twin asked in a high, panicky tone. 

"Go find Smith, get him down here. Mairot too, if you can find him," Max ordered, laying Nez flat on the floor. Maxy nodded, and sprinted out the door, glad to not have to stay. Seeing a partner she had always thought of as so strong out like that frightened the teenager. After she left, Max tried, unsuccessfully, to wake his partner up. However, it quickly became obvious to Max that Nez had been hit hard, and so he would be out for at least a few hours. It was as he stood up that Max noticed the light coppery scent in the room, coming from the control board. He crossed the room to inspect it closer. 

"What the--" he muttered, studying the small dried puddle. It worried him. Nez didn't have any visible bleeding injuries, so who had this come from? Max turned in a slow circle, searching for extra clues. He noticed the blood trail leading to the closet. Max wasted no time in getting to the door and opening it. 

"Berto!" he choked, seeing his close friend and partner. Within a few seconds, Max had the injured agent out and was freeing him from the binds. 

"Berto, come on, wake up," he pleaded, shaking Berto's shoulder firmly. With a sigh, he carried the teen over and laid him next to Nez. Then, burning with rage and worry, he looked around, certain that the attacker must have gotten Rachel as well. As his eyes scanned the room, he noticed that the main console had a huge dent in the side facing the closet. He strode over to investigate. 

"Hmm..." Max muttered, kneeling to get a better look. From behind it, a low groan emitted. Startled, Max raised his head and peered behind the control board. A boot clad foot was barely visible. Max shoved some wires and miscellaneous metal pieces aside, and picked Rachel from the tangle. She was sort of conscious, and Max guessed the dent in the machinery was from her attack. He set her beside the other two. She said something, but all Max understood was "guy...here...Berto..." 

"Shh, don't talk," the younger agent ordered quietly. 

"I found Dad and Mairot!" Maxy announced, rushing in. She snapped to a stop, seeing the others. In three quick strides, she was kneeling beside her brother. 

"W-what happened here?" she panted, looking at the unconscious agents. 

"Someone was here," Max replied, remembering Rachel's words. Smith and Mairot entered right then. 

"Get Yevshenko!" Smith ordered at once. Maxy sprang up, and rushed away. Mairot and Smith joined in trying to revive the fallen agents. So far, Rachel was the only one to come anywhere near their reality. Breathing hard, Maxy soon returned with Yevshenko and three stretchers. Berto, Rachel, and Jake were loaded onto the stretchers, and were rushed to the medical lab. Yevshenko told everyone to wait outside while she checked the conditions of the three. 

"What do you think could have happened?" Maxy asked. It was a stupid question, but she couldn't think of anything else to say. 

"It's obvious. Someone got in here and took them out," Max stated bluntly. Now wasn't the time for subtlety.

"But how could they have bypassed our security?" Maxy argued, hands on her hips. 

"If they looked like an agent, and had the right codes," Smith replied. Yevshenko appeared then. 

"What's wrong?" Max asked instantly. 

"All three were knocked unconscious by a severe blow to the head," the female doctor began. "Which, judging by the marks on all three, was done by a human as strong as Max or Maxy," the doctor lamented, looking straight at the twins.

"What do you mean?" Jeff asked, glancing at his adopted son and daughter. 

"Leeds has hand shaped bruises on her shoulders, and both Nez and Martinez have fist-like imprints in the backs of their heads. The severity of the injuries on all three could only have been accomplished by someone with your abilities," Yevshenko stated, indicating the twin agents, both of whom looked shocked. Mairot picked up his phone, spoke into it, and several other agents came. 

"I'm sorry, Max, Maxy, but until we find out what happened, you two will have to remain here, in your rooms," the French senior agent told them. Smith looked like he was very reluctant to do this, but it was a policy. 

"Why? We didn't do anything," Maxy started to launch into a long complaining session. Max stopped her, sensing that there were others besides himself who didn't want to listen to her righteous arguing. 

"Kel, don't make it worse," he intoned softly. 

"NO! If we didn't do anything, why do we have to be locked up?" the female teeanger spoke angrily. 

"Kelly, we went over the N-tek policy, you know the rules," Max said in an attempt at getting her to be more compliant. 

"Okay, but we didn't do anything," Maxy grumbled after a short argument. The guards escorted them to their rooms, first Maxy, then Max. 

The second Max's door shut, he turned on his tracer radio. There was a burst of static while the thing tried to adjust itself. 

"Kelly, are you there?" he asked. A headache was forming, he didn't want to talk. But, if his sister needed an outlet, then he was willing.

"Yeah, I'm here," was the angry response. Then again, maybe she didn't want to talk right at the moment. One could hope, after all.

"Kel, calm down. Let's focus on figuring out who could have broken in," Max pleaded in reply, closing his eyes. The florescent lights above him seemed painfully bright suddenly. He reached over and shut them off.

"This stinks, and it was that guy I saw on the road," Maxy grumbled with conviction. She wouldn't have noticed if the sun was standing before her. All she could see was the red anger from unfair accusations, and the pale fear that her partners were seriously wounded.

"You could be right," Max agreed. His twin suddenly started crying. The sound alerted the male agent, the noise wasn't a good sign. He knew she was really high-strung. This situation was exactly the kind of thing that could set off explosive emotions. Especially now, it was a problem that made him wish she'd never found out about N-tek.

"Look, right now I just want to figure this out on my own," she said through her tears. 

"Okay, Kel," Max said softly, a tight pain in his chest. The tracer clicked off, and he sighed. Being accused of attacking his own friends and partners was bad enough, Maxy's way of handling it was worse. He dropped onto his bed, wondering how long he'd be stuck in here. 

*****

The stranger stood before his superior's desk, patiently awaiting further instructions. Or so it seemed. He had plans of his own, ones which could conflict with Dread's intentions. Even as they spoke, the mysterious man was wondering if his superior hadn't realized that Maxy had gotten Max so quickly because he'd made sure the captured teenager was placed in a simple-to-break-into cell.

"I want you to return to the N-tek base, and bring back Max Steel," Dread ordered without looking at the man he spoke to. 

"Why didn't I just get him while I was there before?" the man demanded. 

"His sister was with him. While one would be easy to take care of, both would be an unbeatable challenge, even for you. By now, they should have been taken to their quarters. Bringing him back should be simple," Dread lamented. 

"Yes, sir," the agent stated shortly, turning to leave. He exited the Dread base, and walked towards the Dread vehicle disguised as a N-tek issue car. As he got in, he checked that he had a black mask with him. _Dread will get his Steel twins, but not before I string it out,_ he thought.

*****

It took Maxy almost an hour to calm down enough to talk with anyone. Max had been in a light sleep when she called.

"Josh, are you there?" she asked finally, her voice much calmer and steadier. 

"Yeah, I'm here. Are you all right?" Max replied quickly. 

"I'm fine, it's just...oh, Josh! How could they think we would do that to them?" Maxy almost started to cry again. Max quickly said a few choice comforting words to her. 

"It's not really that they think it was us. They know that I was at the Dread base, and you were looking for me when they were taken out, and the blood on the console will support that," he began, then mentally cracked himself in the head for the last part. As he'd predicted, it caught her attention. 

"Blood?" Maxy choked, her face turning several shades paler. 

"Yeah. But, the real reason they locked us up was more to protect us," Max explained, trying to break away from the subject. His twin sister snorted. 

"By accusing us of trying to kill Berto, Rachel, and Jake, then locking us up in our own rooms?" she asked sarcastically. 

"Kel, it's not like that. Think about it. Rachel, Berto, and Nez are all part of Team Steel, and they were the only ones attacked. Smith and Mairot are only doing this to make sure the same thing doesn't happen to us," Max lamented. 

"Yeah, but if that person still running around, we're sitting ducks. There's no way for us to escape if something gets in the room," Maxy reminded him. 

"That's the point. How could anyone even get in here?" Max explained. There was a three-second pause.

"They could get in through the air conditoning. I know it's not accessable from our rooms, but someone in them could break them open and drop down," Maxy argued triumphantly. 

"They're hoping that he's left," Max guessed next. A sound above his head, up in the air conditioning ducts, startled the young N-tek agent. He made a surprised noise, mixed with suspiscion. His hand reached for the light switch. The bright flash caught him off-guard.

"What's wrong?" Maxy asked quickly, sensing his apprehension, even over the static on the radio. A loud crash replied, as if a metal grate had been kicked out. 

"What the--who are you?!" she heard Max shout, followed by a soft, threatening chuckle. The girl could have sworn she heard a cracking of knuckles. 

"You're coming with me," a low voice snapped. For a moment, Maxy tried to place the voice. It seemed so familiar, like it was someone she knew, or had known.

"No way," she heard her brother reply. Sounds of fighting came over the tracer radio. Maxy assumed her brother had locked the button down so she could hear whatever happened. Suddenly, heavy punch, and a loud groan echoed over the line. Maxy panicked when she heard a weighted thud. 

"A tracer radio, how clever," the same cold voice almost chuckled, then the radio went dead. 

"Josh?! Josh, come in!" Maxy shrieked, slapping her tracer radio. He didn't reply. In a wild panic, Maxy threw herself in a side kick at the door. It didn't budge, or even dent. 

"Going turbo!" she cried, clicking the proper button. She sent another kick, and another, and another. Still the door didn't budge, the reinforced metal holding strong. Maxy went turbo again when she felt the effects wearing off. She couldn't believe no one was outside to hear her. _I'd think they'd have guards around, in case I tried something like this,_ she thought wryly.

"Hiya!" she shouted, swinging another kick. The door frustrated her, and she smashed it as hard as she could, then went turbo again. The last sounds she heard from her brother's room made her certain that he was being kidnapped, or maybe even killed right there. Determination to save her remaining family overrode the rapidly settling fatigue in her muscles.

"Come on, stupid door," she growled, slamming into the door again, creating a small dent. She charged again, not knowing how dangerously low her T-juice level was getting. All that mattered was getting out and finding her brother before it was too late. She struck the door again, and fell back, gasping for breath. She went turbo again, and stood the attack the door again, panting heavily. The strength seemed to drain from her, and she collasped on the floor. Maxy struggled to rise, but she just couldn't, it took too much effort. As she lay there, a last ditch idea came to her. She forced her hand to get the credit card-like scanner for Max's ring tracer, and pulled her hand up to her head. Her hand, still holding the card, dropped as she fainted. 

Standing outside the medical lab, Smith was talking to Mairot.

"Did we really have to lock them up? It was clear that they hadn't been the attackers, either of them," Smith was asking Mairot. 

"It was the best way to keep the attacker from getting them too. It would be worse if he got them while they were away from N-tek," Mairot replied. Smith nodded in agreement. 

"Still, we should at least go talk to Maxy. Max understands, but it was obvious she either didn't understand, or didn't want to," Smith decided, standing. Mairot nodded and stood as well. They walked down towards her room, discussing how to approach the subject. 

"If she's anything like her brother, she'll understand," Smith said with conviction, typing an entrance code for the teen's door. The massive door slid open, revealing Maxy sprawled out face down in the middle of the room. 

"Mairot, go get Yevshenko," Smith ordered. The agent nodded and left. Smith entered and knelt down beside Maxy. 

"Kelly?" he asked softly. She didn't move. He noticed the item in her hand, and pried it loose. It was the scanner that was for the tracers both McGrath/Steel twins wore. It didn't take long to figure it out. According to the screen, Maxy was at N-tek HQ, as expected, and Max was...somewhere on the highway? The father remembered Max telling him how to adjust it to center on a specific signal and show a more detailed grid, but in the panic, he couldn't remember how. Mairot and Yevshenko appeared. He forgot about the tracer, absently shoving it into his pocket.

"She and Max must have been attacked," Smith stated. 

"Why do you think that?" Mairot asked, rather stupidly, picking up Maxy and placing her on the stretcher they had brought. 

"Look at this. According to this, Max is on the highway. The attacker must have come after her, then taken Max," Smith theorized. Neither Yevshenko or Mairot said anything, both were too occupied with getting Maxy to wake up. Yevshenko wheeled her into an exam room. And wheeled her out minutes later, heading towards the transphasik generator. 

"She's out of energy. Get the generator ready," Yevshenko ordered. Maxy was secured into the chair, and lowered into the middle of the generating room. The spinning rings began to whirl, and as they moved faster and faster, the green energy collected in the center, and was directed into Maxy's body. As she was being taken back out, the girl regained conciousness. 

"What's going on?! Where's my brother?!" were the first things to come out of her mouth. 

"Calm down, Maxy. You were completely out of energy, we had to recharge you. Max is gone, someone took him from his room," her adoptive parent explained. 

"I know, I heard," Maxy whispered, quietly getting out of the wheel-chair. No one tried to stop her, and she didn't waver.

"What do you mean?" Mairot pressed curiously, forgetting about the twin's tracers. More like, he didn't know about them.

"Josh and I have tracer radios, and we were talking. I heard the whole thing when he was attacked, and knocked out," the girl explained. She squinted at the ceiling light, and was pleased to find she could see clearly.

"You mean, whoever it was didn't come for you?" Smith demanded quickly. 

"No," Maxy replied. 

"Then how did you run out of energy?" Mairot questioned. 

"I was trying to kick down my door when I heard what had happened in Max's room. I kept going turbo, and I guess I pushed it too far," Maxy shrugged nonchalantly. She shot the much older agents hard looks. "I might've been able to save him if it wasn't for that door," she snapped. After a second, she paused, then started digging into her belt pouches. She sighed, and looked to her father. "Do you have my scanner? The one that looks kind of like a credit card?" she asked. Smith nodded, and gave it to her. Maxy slipped the thin plastic-like item into it's pouch on her belt, and turned to the door. 

"Where are you going?" Mairot demanded, freezing the female agent in mid-step. She refused to turn and look at them.

"To get my brother," Maxy replied, not turning around. She resumed walking after half a split second.

"Negative. They might try to get you too," Mairot told her, stopping her again. She whipped around, looking irritated. 

"You're going to keep me here so that I'm an easier target for whoever this is? I don't think so. I don't know about you, but I'm not relaxing until my brother is safely back here," she snapped with authority she definitely didn't have over the older man, whirling around to face them. Mairot started to speak, but Smith cut him off. It was a pointless argument. He'd learned quickly, once Maxy got an idea, she generally couldn't be stopped. This kind of issue definitely wasn't one she would ever plan to back down from.

"Be careful, then," Smith warned, surprising everyone. Maxy smiled after a moment, gave him an exaggerated salute, and bolted before he could change his mind, heading out to get _Crane._ There was a surprised silence among the three older agents. Smith wasn't known for backing down like that.

"You're actually letting her go?" Mairot asked, looking at the N-tek official. 

"Better to let her go freely instead of having her waste energy escaping here," he replied reasonably. It was true, especially in Maxy's case.

*****

Maxy was flying past the twin's beach house as she checked her scanner again. He wasn't on the highway anymore, but heading for the mountains. The communications part of the device was still unresponsive. _Just hang on, Josh,_ she thought, fairly calmly. Getting her brother back wouldn't be easy, and if she was in a state of panic, it would be literally impossible. She worked on staying calm and focused, saving her energy for beating up whoever had attacked her brother. She would need it. Few on this planet could take out her twin in a fist fight so rapidly.

  


_Thrilling, confusing, funny at times, this just keeps getting better, right? "Meet My Clone" is next up, and we finally find out who the mystery character is!_

-Maxy Steel


	3. Meet My Clone

_General disclaimer: The TV show Max Steel is not mine, though I really wish it was. It belongs to a number of companies whose names escape my memory at the moment, but my name wasn't on that list, if I recall. Kelly McGrath/Maxy Steel, and Xam Steel are my characters, and I will set my corgi-beagle on you if you use their names or their characters without my permission. Enough of that, on with the story!_

  


**MEET MY CLONE**

**BY:**

**Maxy Steel**

  


**Timeline: Second half of "Double the Fun"**

Within a few hours of being taken to the Dread base, Max slowly began to wake. With a low groan, he pushed his upper body off the cold cement floor, trying to blink past the comets and stars circling his vision. The edges of his sight blurred wildly and took on a black tint.

"Man, what happened?" he breathed, looking around, taking in his surroundings. The last thing he remembered, that guy with a black mask dropping out of the air conditioning ducts. Now he was laying facedown on the floor of some grimy cell, probably in a Dread base. The groggy teenager started to turn on his back, and winced violently, placing one hand over his side. A vague memory of the masked attacker kicking him came to mind, and Max dug the heel of his right hand into his forehead, emitting a slight groan as a massive headache began to manifest. His "over-protective-brother-mode," as Kelly called it, kicked in, and he wondered if whoever got him also attacked his sister. A loud clink of a key turning in a heavy lock startled the young agent.

"Hmm, finally, you're awake," a voice said near him.

Max looked up, and sucked a surprised breath. A person stood at the door, leaning on the frame work.

"You look shocked. Come on, don't tell me you don't remember one of your recent visits," the man said in a scolding voice. Max shook his head, and felt a sickening wave of dizziness sweep over him. His last few visits here weren't recalled, he'd been out most of the time.

"W-who are y-you?" he slurred drunkenly.

"If you haven't figured it out yet, then you will eventually. Until then, you're supposed to stay quiet," the stranger replied, walking towards him. Max then noticed the cloth and bottle in the guy's hands.

"It was you at the base. You're the one who attacked Rachel, Berto, and Jake," Max gasped in a feeble attempt to stall him.

"You're more perceptive than I thought," the agent returned, kneeling down beside Max. He grabbed the incoherent teen by the back of the neck, and forced the cloth over his nose and mouth. Max grabbed at the hand over his face for a second, then lapsed back into unconsciousness. The man waited a moment more, then got up.

"Sweet dreams, Mr. Steel," he muttered, leaving.

*****

Maxy parked _Crane_ near the base, put the jet in stealth mode, and hurried towards the building, her sharp eyes scanning for entrances. A Dread agent had the misfortune to come out one of the doors, and Maxy slammed her palm into his chin, kneed him in the stomach, and punched him across the side of the head, effectively knocking him out. Swiftly, she knelt, stripped him of his armor, and put it on. With a prayer of hope, she marched into the building. Luckily, no one questioned her, even when she dipped into a tool closet. Maxy pulled off the armor, softly setting it on the floor. She studied the rows of tools.

"Better safe than sorry," she muttered, selecting a screwdriver. She hopped up on a table, and began fiddling with the screws holding it in place. Within a few moments, she had the grate resting on the table beside her, and was securing the tool in a pocket on her right leg. Placing one hand on either side of the duct opening, Maxy drew herself up into the darkened tunnel.

"And this is the part I hate," the brunette sighed, edging slowly forward. It took forever to locate a somewhat familiar point, and with a hope that each Dread building was similar in design, she turned down a tunnel, heading for the cells, where she was certain she'd find her missing brother.

Maxy peered into various rooms as she came to them. She looked into one room, and smothered a gasp. Psycho! She flung herself away from the grate and froze, not even daring to breathe. She remained in her stiff position until Psycho left the room, then cautiously continued on. The brunette thumped softly down the dark metal tunnels, until she came to the cells.

First cell, nothing. Ditto for the second and third. There was no fourth cell, and the female N-tek agent moved on towards the fifth. A figure lay in the cell, a young man wearing an N-tek uniform laying on his side. Maxy had the grate off, and was down in the cell a minute later.

"Josh! Get up, will ya?" she demanded softly. Max slowly opened his eyes and sat up.

"What happened?" he muttered, looking around the room blearily. Maxy was on her feet and trying to pull him up as well.

"Hurry up. You can wake up later, we've got to get out of here," she insisted. 

"Slow down, you're not the one with a major headache here," Max snapped back, a little more angrily than Maxy expected. She quickly attributed it to the recent events, and let it go without any argument.

"Okay, but could you hurry up? I saw Psycho on my way down here, and I really don't want to deal with him right now," Maxy sighed. Max stood after a second, and gave his sister a leg up into the vent before Maxy helped him up as well. They crawled through the darkened tunnels, back tracking Maxy's path inside.

They made it out in fairly good time.

"How are you feeling?" Maxy asked as she stretched and arched her body after the cramped tunnel. Max put a hand to his head.

"Still kind of dizzy," he replied. Maxy turned to regard him curiously.

"They must have hit you harder than I thought. By now, you should've stopped being foggy," she mused, then shrugged it off. "You shouldn't be piloting anything, then, we can take _Crane,_" she added, signaling the jet. Two minutes later, they were speeding back to base.

"How are Berto, Rachel, and Jake doing?" Max asked halfway home.

"I'd have thought you'd have asked me a while ago, but anyway, all three are still pretty bad, but Rachel seemed a little better," Maxy replied, waiting for some sort of reaction from her brother.

"That's good," he said simply, his voice giving the teenager a chill. He sounded cold, like a robot or something. Surprised, Maxy turned slightly in her seat.

"I think you're gonna need to rest for a while when we get back. You don't sound like yourself," the female brunette stated, turning back to her driving. 

*****

Smith and Mairot were relieved to see Maxy appear with her formerly stolen brother in tow. Max said little, then left to his room as Maxy had suggested. Maxy remained to talk to Jeff and Mairot.

"I'm not sure what's going on, but doesn't Josh seem just a little more out of it than he should?" she asked casually.

"It's just post-traumatic stress, Kelly," Smith assured. Maxy crossed her arms, deep in thought.

"I'm finding that hard to believe. But you could be right," she said after a moment, turning to head to her room. Her head spun with questions as she walked. _What's up with Josh? He's acting...out of character, definitely. Dad's gotta be right, it must be 'cause he just got out of the base,_ Maxy thought. The door nearly hit her face, she was so lost in her deep well of thought. Shaking her head at her own clumsiness, Maxy punched her code and walked into her room, crashing on the bed, sound asleep within a few minutes.

*****

The next morning, Maxy blinked awake, surprised to discover she'd forgotten to transform before falling asleep. She flipped onto her back and examined the ceiling in a bored way. The smooth gray concrete looked no different. She sat up and looked around. The room was bland, all in shades of gray. _Almost like Josh,_ she caught herself thinking_. He's acting like all the color was drained from him,_ she added mentally. She got up and opened the door, heading for the training room. Loud "hiya!s" and other such shouts indicated someone else was already using some of the equipment. She moved stealthily down the hall, then started as she registered what she was doing, straightened, and walked normally the rest of the way. As she came closer, she realized it was her brother. From the sounds of it, he was using the suspended punching bag. She asked herself what she was doing as she slipped around to see watch him without being seen. It was him, all right. He was throwing kicks ferociously at the hapless bag. She blinked as the bag rattled violently on it's chain after receiving a particularly savage attack. With a loud yell, Max spun and slammed his heel into the bag. There was a rip, and the bag flew across the room, thudding against the wall seven feet away. Maxy refrained from gasping. She'd never known Max to possess that kind of strength outside of turbo mode! Wondering if he'd tell her just how he accomplished that, she stepped into the training room.

"How'd that happen?" she asked, pointing at the discarded bag. Max shrugged.

"I do not know. I was like that when I came in," he replied, turning to head to some other equipment. Warning signals went off in Maxy's brain. Josh, her brother, had just lied to her face! Red flashed in the young woman's vision. What was he up to? The two of them had _never_ hidden anything from each other.

"Really," she said casually, trying to hide her reactions. She decided to ask him later, and left.

*****

Maxy sat in Smith's office, telling her father about the morning's events.

"I'm sure of it. He knocked the thing clean off it's chain, then denied knowing anything about it," Maxy insisted. Smith leaned back slightly, thinking.

"He could have been embarrassed by it," the twin's father mused reasonably.

"That wouldn't be the Josh McGrath or Max Steel I know. He would have come found me and bragged about it. We're always trying to one-up each other. It's a kind of game we've got going," she replied. Smith stood.

"I can talk to him," he offered.

"No, I think I should. He's acting out of it, maybe it'll pass, but still, I'm going to go talk to him right now," she stated, turning for the door. _I'll beat it out of him if I have to,_ she thought, marching down the hall back towards the training room. Max wasn't there.

"Weird," she muttered, heading for his room. No luck there either.

"Maybe he's avoiding me," she mused, going back to her room. If Max was purposely staying away from her, she wasn't about to invade on his wishes. She'd find him later, maybe by then he'd be back to normal and would have an explanation for his behavior.

*****

Max wasn't back by sunset, and it was almost 11:00 by the time he showed back up at N-tek. Maxy, bleary eyed but having stubbornly stayed awake until he arrived, was in a bit of a bad mood. She was waiting outside the building when his car pulled up.

"Where have you been?!" she demanded when he neared her. 

"Out," he replied shortly, trying to brush past her. Maxy grabbed his arm.

"Look, I have no idea what's wrong with you, but I will find out," she vowed slowly. Max smiled, a cold smile that sent chills down her sister's spine, then threw her off violently, stalking into the building. The stunned girl stood there for a minute, then followed him, heading for her room instead.

*****

The next morning, Maxy wasted no time in calling a meeting between herself, Smith, and Mairot in one of the smaller conference rooms.

"Has Josh been acting...strange around either of you since we got back?" Maxy started the meet. Both men shook their heads.

"He doesn't seem out of character, but I haven't been around him much since he returned," Mairot offered. Maxy turned to her adoptive father.

"I haven't noticed anything out of the ordinary, except he seems a little withdrawn, but not that noticeably," Jeff added.

"Then it must be me. He's been acting really weird. He's cold, easily angered, he lied to me. It's almost like it's not really Josh," Maxy grumbled, standing up. "Thanks, you've given me a few more things to think about. So, where's Josh? I want to talk with him," she added.

"He left early this morning, something about meeting someone," Mairot stopped her short. With an exasperated sigh, she stalked out the door. _He is definitely up to something, and I don't like what it's turning out to be,_ she thought angrily as she left the building. _Star_ was waiting outside in it's usual parking spot. Maxy transformed, and jumped into the green car, hitting a switch, transforming it into Kelly's white convertible. When she started the car, the blond teen had no idea where she planned to go, she just had to drive. She went to the beach house, got her gear for surfing and rock climbing, then dumped it all in her car. She spent most of the morning at the beach, and was rock climbing until hours after sunset. 

Halfway down the highway, she decided on one last destination. Kelly turned off the next exit, heading for Del Oro University. She steered for the student dorm buildings. 

"Come on, where is it?" she mumbled, stopping to dig through her glove compartment. She pulled out a cell phone and a piece of paper, dialing a few numbers.

"Hi, Laura?" she greeted Josh's girlfriend. 

"Kelly?" Laura returned, yawning. Kelly blushed and looked at her watch. It was 11:30 in the evening, a little late for the normal college student.

"Oh man, I'm sorry, but this is kind of important," Kelly exclaimed. Laura, who had been laying down, sat up at the faint quaver in her boyfriend's sister's voice.

"What? Is something wrong?" she asked in concern.

"You mind if I come up? The batteries on this thing are going dead," Kelly replied.

"No prob. How long will it take?" the Chinese girl said agreeably.

"Your room's 324, Hamilton dorm, right ?" Kelly questioned in response. Laura confirmed this. "Give me five minutes," Kelly grinned in spite of herself. There was a surprised noise on Laura's end, then she gave her the OK.

As promised, Kelly knocked on Laura's dorm five minutes later.

"Hey, come in," Laura greeted, dressed half-heartedly in a white T-shirt and gray sweatpants, her hair looking as if she had quickly run a brush through it. Kelly smiled, and walked in. The space wasn't too familiar to her, but she'd visited a few times.

"Sorry about waking you up," she added apologetically.

"Don't worry about it. Have a seat," Laura returned, draping herself gracefully over the couch while Kelly took a chair nearby. 

"So...what's up?" the Chinese teenager asked with a slight yawn.

"Have you seen Josh lately?" Kelly asked swiftly. Laura shot her a curious look.

"What are you talking about? I haven't seen him since before yesterday. He called to say he was going to another N-tek manufacturing plant, and wouldn't be back for a few days," Laura replied. After a moment of thought, she added, "I'm surprised to see you here. Josh told me you were going with him."

"Funny, he never mentioned anything to me," Kelly muttered, almost to herself. Deciding to play along, she added, "he left yesterday, but he was acting really weird."

"Like how? Maybe he was sick," Laura pressed, sounding concerned.

"I don't think so. He was...like a different person almost," Kelly mused. Laura yawned again.

"Maybe I should go. You look really tired," Kelly added with a smile. Laura smiled sleepily.

"I think you might be right. I was up kind of late studying," Laura murmured in a half-awake state. Kelly left a few minutes later, after Laura had fallen asleep.

*****

She was left with even more questions after her chat with Laura. _Josh, why are you doing this? What is so wrong that you're cutting the rest of us off? _she asked herself, shooting along the highway, the. This was so unlike Josh, it was starting to scare her. She headed in the direction of the beach house.

To her incredible surprise, Max was there, waiting for her.

"Josh. I'd think you'd be asleep," she greeted, stepping from her car. She glanced at her watch and added, "it is 12:30 in the morning, you know." Max, leaning against his own car, walked over to her. 

"Hello, Kelly," he returned. Kelly brushed by him, heading for the house.

"Come on, I have to talk to you," she called over her shoulder. Max hesitated, then walked after her, radiating a calmness that unnerved his sister. 

"Why? There something wrong?" Max asked innocently. For the moment, the teenage girl ignored him, and headed for the kitchen. She busied herself with getting a couple glasses of soda while she thought of questions to ask. Max came in and stood behind her.

"I said, is there something wrong?" he repeated, forcefully. Kelly picked up the two glass cups, and turned to face him. 

"I'd like to talk about your behavior for the last day or two," she explained calmly. 

"Everything was going fine, until you started getting suspicious. I guess I'm not that good of an actor," he replied in an equally calm tone. Kelly raised an eyebrow at him.

"I didn't know you'd taken up acting," she said jokingly. Max grabbed her wrists, violently, hard enough to bruise a normal girl. 

"I haven't," he said coldly, twisting her wrists almost to the breaking point. The teenaged girl in his grip struggled against him.

"Josh, you're hurting me!" the blond cried frantically, trying to pull her arms back. The glasses fell to the floor, shattering. The dark liquid inside splattered on the floor, and both teenager's clothes. Kelly screamed wildly in hopes that someone was around. In one quick motion, Max's grip went from her aching wrists to her upper arms, and threw her through the kitchen door. The teen hit a chair, and fell with it, landing behind the couch. Her grip on the chair remained firm as she got up, shocked and horrified. 

"I'm not Josh," Max said icily. Kelly threw the chair away, transformed, and took a fighting stance. Instinctively, she lunged at him, throwing kicks and punches for all she was worth. To her complete surprise, Max was able to dodge or block each of her attacks, and have the time to land a few of his own. The female brunette winced as pain radiated through her body and objects hit the ground around them, several of them shattering. Max aimed a final kick to her chest that sent Maxy across the room, and she struck a table which held a small vase. Her back struck the table, and she fell with it. The vase smashed against the wall behind her, and Maxy herself landed back first on the table edge, hard. She could have sworn she heard something crack.

"Ahh!" she wailed, pain spasming through her body. Max moved towards her. Breathing heavily in pain, Maxy looked up, momentarily unable to move most of her body.

"You don't really think you can beat me, do you?" Max sneered at her.

"Who are you?" Maxy gasped, struggling to stand. She paused to activate her radar, running it over the places where the signal would be on an N-tek agent. After a moment, she gasped.

"You're not even an N-tek agent!" she said in surprise.

"You're right, but I'm not a Dread agent either," he replied, stepping forward and pressing his right foot against her left arm, grinding it into the floor, pressing her back harder into the table edge. "I'm both."

Maxy struggled wildly before striking his shin with her right foot, knocking him off his feet. She took his momentary loss of concentration to spring up, even with her injuries. Slightly off balance from her back, her chest burning, she tried to steady herself. Max smiled as he got up. In one fluid motion, he shot forward, grabbed Maxy by the throat with one hand, slamming her against the wall back first, pinning her arms at the elbows with his free hand. She struggled to breathe, her hands wrapped around the arm attached to the hand around her neck.

"You want to know who I am? I'm the opposite of your brother, his clone. You can call me Xam," Max's clone growled in her face. Maxy looked around the room.

"Look at the mess you made," she gasped, wincing as his fingers around her neck dug deeper into her skin.

"You're pathetic. I'd have expected a better fight from you. You're brother put up a better fight, and he was half-conscious," Xam growled in her face. Maxy blinked and looked him right in the eye.

"I'm not finished yet," she assured.

"And how could you beat me? Look at you. You can barely move," Xam replied.

"Like this. GOING TURBO!" she shouted, striking the button on her bio-link. In a quick flash, she slammed both her knees into his chest, ignoring most of the stabbing pain in her back. More surprised then hurt, he stumbled back, allowing Maxy a clean blow to his head with her fist. Xam staggered back, holding his hand to the place where she'd hit him.

"You are going to pay for that," he snarled, lunging at her. Maxy tried to dodge, but he caught her foot. With a thud, she hit the floor hands first. Immediately, she tried to kick away. Xam caught her by the wrists, and yanked her to her feet, keeping her arms pressed against her back.

"That hurts. Mind letting go?" the trapped agent groaned.

"Sorry," Xam replied. He slammed her into the wall several times before letting her go. With a groan, Maxy slid to the floor, knocked out. Xam looked down at her with disgust, then picked her up.

*****

When she came to, Maxy found herself in a cell not unlike the one she had found Xam in. She started to stretch, but was stopped by a pair of handcuffs clapped around her wrists.

"Man..." she sighed, looking down. It looked like the same stuff she had been secured to the tree with. A quick test proved her theory. A low groan startled the trapped girl. Maxy whipped around, and choked on her air. Max was leaning against the wall beside her. A quick scan revealed the young man to be the real Max. Maxy leaned over, wincing as her spine protested, and jammed her knee into his side.

"Wake up!" she hissed, hitting him again. Max blinked slowly, and turned to look at her.

"What're you doing here?" he asked in confusion. 

"We can discuss that later. Help me get these things off," Maxy replied, holding out her wrists. Max stared at her blankly. Maxy sighed angrily.

"What did they give you? Something that neutralized your brain?" she asked with a deep sigh.

"I've been out for the last few days...there was a guy...he looked like...me..." Max groaned.

"I know, he's been posing as you for the last couple days. I just found out, right before he beat me up and I landed here," Maxy clarified. Max looked over at her.

"I noticed the bruises. Are you going to be okay?" he replied. Maxy reached up slowly to touch the side of her head that had been slammed into the wall, which still hurt, badly, as did her back. The table edge must have dug into her harder than she thought.

"I'll be fine. Come on, help me get these things off so we can get out of here," Maxy assured. Max gripped the metal clamps around her wrists.

"One...two...three!" the teenage girl counted quickly.

There was a snap, and the metal rope connecting the cuffs broke. With a relieved sigh, Maxy slumped against the wall, and groaned. Max noticed immediately.

"You're more hurt than just a couple bruises," he observed. Maxy shook her head as she stood again.

"It's nothing, I hit a table, don't worry about it," she assured him in one of her least convincing tones.

Max shrugged, disbelief on his face. He held his sister up while she pulled on the vent. Maxy's suggestion had been to smash the door and wait for the guards, then take them out. Max had vetoed that idea after seeing how much pain his sister was in from her back. 

*****

They got out of the maze of vents not too long after. Max stared at the bright sunlight outside, blinking.

"Don't look up, you've been too used to the dark," Maxy scolded, hitting her signal call for _Crane _and checking the time_._ It was 6:30 in the morning. 

"I think you're right..." Max stuttered, then hit the roof on his side in a dead faint. 

"Josh!" Maxy squealed softly, kneeling beside him. She checked for a pulse, then realized it was just from everything catching up to him. _Crane_ chose that moment to arrive.

"I can't take him to the base, Xam might catch us before I can talk to Dad. So where _can_ I take him?" Maxy mused, loading her brother into the backseat of the jet. Not the beach house, Xam would expect that, and he'd catch Josh before she could get help. Who could she trust to watch her brother until everything was set straight? Maxy wracked her brain over and over as she flew away from the base. And then it came to her. Maxy leaned in back and hit her brother's transform button. Hopefully, the plan she had in mind would work.

Maxy pulled up outside the building, in stealth mode, a few minutes later. She transformed as she exited the jet. _Please let this work..._ she thought, trotting up the steps. With a slightly shaky hand, she knocked on the door. Laura, looking more perky than she had the last time the blond had seen her, answered.

"Kelly! Hi, come in," the young woman greeted, opening the door wider. Kelly shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but I can't. Look, this is really important. While he was away, Josh ran into some guy, and was attacked by him. I really don't know why, but right now, I need someplace to have Josh stay until this thing is cleared up. Could he stay with you?" Kelly explained. She waited for Laura to laugh, scold her for being silly, anything.

"You're serious?" the teenager asked in surprise. Kelly nodded, mentally crossing her fingers. "Of course I will. Where is he now?"

"Down in my car, I'll go get him," Kelly replied, turning.

She flipped the lid of her jet up, and grabbed her brother, dragging him out of the back seat, nearly falling from her precarious position on the wing as she dropped to the ground, her back protesting angrily.

"Come on, big guy," she muttered, laying him on the ground. A few slaps to the face got him coherent enough to walk with assistance, but not really register anything. Laura gasped when she saw them.

"What could Josh have done that got him this hurt?" the Chinese girl asked as the two women laid the unconscious young man on the couch.

"I have no idea," Kelly lied through her teeth, wincing as her back tried to spasm again. Laura caught her momentary expression of pain.

"You're hurt," she observed intelligently.

"I was getting Josh away from that guy, and I kind of took a couple good hits," Kelly replied. Laura looked down.

"You two really watch out for each other, don't you?" she asked, though it was more like a statement than a question. The boy's sister nodded, looking fondly at her brother.

"Neither of us is willing to risk losing the other. Josh is more protective than I am, though," Kelly smiled.

"I'd better go," she whispered, turning to the door. "Keep an eye on him," she added at the door.

"I will," Laura promised, and then Kelly was gone. She paused only long enough to transform before running back to _Crane._

*****

Maxy piloted _Crane_ to N-tek, deep in thought. She'd just pulled Laura into this whole mess. Of course, it had been in the best interests of her brother. Josh clearly wasn't up for anything more strenuous than breathing. _But then, neither am I,_ Maxy thought wryly. N-tek came into view, thankfully. She landed her jet in the hanger, and almost fell out as she got out of the jet. Her back was refusing to leave her alone.

"That looks pretty painful, maybe you should see a physician," a voice called from the entrance. Maxy froze then turned slowly around. Xam was standing near the door.

"You're worse than a plague," the female brunette whispered, edging down to the ground. Xam smiled at her.

"You could save me time and tell me where you left your brother," he called at her.

"You don't really think that would work on me, do you? If you knew anything about Josh or I, you'd know that neither of us would do that," Maxy replied, placing one hand on her hip.

"Then I guess I'll have to beat it out of you," Xam called at her with a shrug, running forward. Maxy jumped back onto the jet wing, and from there, onto the glass dome lid. 

"You'll have to catch me first," she told him, tottering slightly, then regaining her balance. Xam watched her, then laughed, striding into the hanger.

"That'll be a little too easy," he taunted, grabbing hold of the jet wing and hoisting himself up. Maxy took a couple steps back. Xam lunged forward, and Maxy flipped backwards. He missed her, but she missed the plane with her right foot. Unable to regain her balance on one foot, she fell, hitting the cement floor of the hanger, five feet below, on her side. Xam landed near her as she struggled to stand.

"Give up?" the clone asked, stepping closer.

"Not likely," Maxy replied, flipping back to her feet.

"We've gone over the close combat, you know you can't beat me, especially now," Xam sighed, shaking his head. Maxy shot forward, throwing a kick. Xam caught her foot, and flipped her. 

"Okay, that's not gonna work," Maxy decided, standing. "Later!" she called, flipping backwards and running away. She bolted around the side of _Hawk_, and slumped against it. 

"Tag, you're it," a voice said, coming from behind and above her.

Maxy looked up. Xam was standing on the jet's dome lid. He crouched down and grabbed her wrist, lifting her up. She didn't move or struggle.

"Kelly?" an adult voice called, accompanied by footsteps. Xam froze, still holding the teenage girl. He then dropped her hastily and turned. Maxy slid the floor, holding her wrist. She registered her adoptive father's voice, but couldn't get enough energy to speak or move.

"Hey, Dad," Xam called. Smith came closer.

"Where's Kelly? I thought I just saw her," he replied, looking around the hangar.

"Yeah, she's here. I don't know what happened, but..." Xam replied. Maxy struggled as he grabbed her. "She's pretty hurt," the young man finished. Smith looked shocked.

"Take her down to the med lab," he ordered. Xam nodded and helped Maxy towards the hanger entrance.

"You're lucky," he told the barely coherent girl. Maxy wanted to say something, but she simply couldn't. Xam walked her down to the med room, and left. Maxy collapsed soon after in a complete faint.

*****

When she came to, Maxy found herself laying on a bed in the med room. She sat up, and placed a hand to her stomach, wondering how long it had been since the last time she'd eaten, then started, feeling hard plastic or something under her uniform. She checked her watch, it was almost eight at night. Dr. Yevshenko came in at the moment.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, seeing the teenager to be awake.

"Like I was hit by a train," Maxy replied.

"You might have been. You badly sprained your back at some point. With the max-probes in your system, you should be fine if you wear the brace a day or two, though," Yevshenko told her. 

"Where's Xa-er-Max? And Mr. Smith?" Maxy asked quickly.

"Your brother left shortly after bringing you here. Mr. Smith was here for a while, but now I don't know where he is," the female doctor replied.

"Can I move around with this thing on?" Maxy asked, starting to get up.

"You can, but try to minimize your actions," Yevshenko replied.

"I can't do that. Josh is in danger," she sighed, flexing her shoulders.

"What do you mean?" Yevshenko pressed.

"That guy wasn't Josh," Maxy replied from the door. She left before the conversation could press further. She had no time to spare explaining things.

She arrived at her father's office five minutes later, though it took almost an hour to tell everything that had happened.

"...and then I got Josh out of the base," Maxy finished explaining to her father.

"Where is he now?" Smith asked urgently when she finished.

"I left him at Laura's dorm," Maxy replied.

"Good. Go and get him, I'll try to find Xam," Smith ordered. Maxy nodded and got up.

*****

Ten minutes later, Maxy was parking _Crane _in the same bushes she had before. Partially from the darkness, and in part from her recent injuries, she stumbled as she got out, and crashed to the ground.

"I'm gonna need some time to recover after this," she sighed, hauling her body up and transforming. She turned around the corner, and jogged around to the stairs.

"Laura?" she called softly, knocking on the door. No response, she tried again, louder. After another minute of nothing, she tried the door, and started when the knob turned easily. As she opened the door, she noticed the lock was laser damaged. In a panic, she bolted inside. Laura was laying just inside, behind the door, barely conscious. Kelly swung the door shut, and looked around. Josh was gone from his place on the couch. She ran to the bedroom, and all the other rooms. Josh was in none of them. She ran back the living room, dropped her hand bag on the couch, and knelt next to Laura.

"Hey, wake up," she pleaded, slipping her arm around Laura's shoulders. The hurt teenager groaned. Kelly repeated her command, and the teenager winced, blinking awake.

"Oh..." she moaned, looking around. Kelly smiled slowly.

"What happened?" she asked worriedly. Laura took a moment to focus before answering.

"I heard something outside, and I got up to see what it was. The door opened, some guy was there..." she mumbled.

"Did he beat you up?" Kelly pressed. Laura nodded weakly.

"He slammed me up against the wall, he wanted to know where Josh was. I didn't say anything, and he hit me a few times, pounded me against the door, and that's the last thing I remember," she lamented. Kelly's eyes flashed, then she turned back to Laura.

"Okay, I need to know where you're hurt. Say something if this hurts," she instructed. Lightly, she pressed down on the teen's leg, no response. Her hand moved up to Laura's side, and she patted it gently. The young woman cried out sharply. The blonde snapped her hand back.

"Okay..." Kelly murmured, then continued. Laura had injuries on at least her sides, left arm, and a blow to the head. Kelly got up, gently leaning Laura back against the wall, and walked over to the phone.

"I'm gonna call the hospital," Kelly announced. She picked up and dialed. A couple minutes later, she hung up and rushed back to her brother's girlfriend's side.

"Hang in there, girl. We'll get you some help real soon," she promised, patting the girl's hand. Laura was asleep. Kelly stood, and went to the couch, hunting for any clues, though she was sure who it was. Behind one of the pillows arranged on the couch, she found a piece of paper.

"Hello, Kelly. I know you know who this is. Stay by the phone at the beach house after 5:00 in the afternoon tomorrow, unless you don't care about your brother, which I know you do," she read softly, then crumpled the note and shoved it in the pocket of her black jean shorts. The paramedics banged on the door, and she ran over to let them in. In numbing silence, she watched them load Laura on the stretcher and carry her out the door. She waited a few minutes before pulling her scanner out of her pocket, checking it, and taking her cell phone out of her hand bag, rapidly dialing a number.

"Dad? It's Kelly, we've got trouble," she said into the tiny mouth-piece.

"What happened?" Jeff asked in reply. Kelly sighed in exhaustion.

"Xam got here first, I don't know how. He took Josh, and I don't know where he's at. My scanner's blocked," she explained. There was a pause.

"Is Laura all right?" Smith asked finally. The girl sighed sadly.

"No, not really. He beat her up. I called the hospital, they just took her down," Kelly explained. On the other side, Smith sighed.

"We can't find him either. Report back to base as soon as possible. I don't want you out right now," Smith told her. Kelly nodded to nothing.

"Okay, but I have to be at the beach house by five," Kelly explained, moving to the door.

"Why?" her father pressed.

"Xam left a note," was all she said in response before clicking off. She sat on the arm of the couch for a minute, and felt like sobbing her eyes out right there. Life was too complicated at a time like this.

*****

Kelly returned to N-tek as quickly as possible, transforming as she flew. She headed to Smith's office as soon as she left the hanger.

"I don't understand what Xam is doing. They've already taken DNA from him, there can't be any other reason, can there?" she sighed, settling carefully into a chair. Smith paced around.

"Besides the usual reason Dread has, I can't think of anything else," he replied. Maxy looked at her watch, it was just after ten at night.

"How is the rest of Team Steel doing?" she asked.

"All three are doing much better. I believe they are in their rooms, actually," the twin's father assured. Maxy stood and stretched. Her back was doing better, but she was still limited in movement.

"I'm gonna go visit them," she announced, heading for the door.

The brunette first headed to Berto's room. She knocked on the door. Inside, Berto called for her to come in.

"Hey," she greeted, stepping inside. Berto was sitting on his bed, reading. 

"It's kind of late, there some big emergency?" the Spanish teen asked. Maxy gave him a quick once over. He didn't look hurt, the bandages were gone, and he seemed pretty coherent. Even the cut in the side of his head was barely noticeable.

"You look like you've gotten in a few accidents," the younger agent said suddenly.

Maxy blinked a few times. Apparently Berto had been looking at her as well. She had to wonder if he really liked her in a "possible future significant other" way, or just thought of her as a fellow agent. She personally thought of him in the first way, but was too shy to make the first move...yet.

"Nothing serious," the female brunette assured, taking a chair. "Have you heard what's been going on?" she added. Berto shook his head.

"I just got out today, all I've heard is that Max is missing," the younger N-tek agent replied.

"Okay...too much has been going on around here. I'll take it from the top, and then I really need your help," Maxy sighed. Berto leaned closer.

"Let's see...you remember one of the times Max ended up at a Dread base before N-tek was, well, attacked by an intruder?" Maxy began. 

"Yeah..." Berto replied, adding an encouraging note for her to hurry up.

"One time, they took a DNA sample, and, well...cloned him. The clone was at the base, he's the one who attacked you, Rachel, and Jake. Then, after Josh and I were locked in our rooms, Xam, he's Max's clone, kidnapped Josh," Maxy paused for breath.

"Xam? What, you've met him?" Berto questioned, receiving a nod from Maxy.

"Yeah, he's not very nice. But, anyway, then I went to the Dread base he was taken to, and accidentally took Xam instead of Max, 'cause he looks exactly like him," Maxy explained with a slight blush. Berto put a hand on her shoulder reassuringly.

"We're all human, Maxy. Even you. Humans are allowed to make mistakes," he reminded her with a slight chuckle. Even with the light teasing, the girl's hopes rose. Maybe he did like her.

"My gymnastics teacher said that more times than I can count," Maxy grinned, then started to continue. "Xam acted so little like Max, I didn't believe it was him, and that's when the attacks started..." she explained.

An hour later, Maxy finished her story. Berto leaned back, in deep thought. 

"I guess this is bad," he quipped. Maxy smiled and playfully punched him in the arm.

"I think my personality is starting to rub off on you," she teased light-heartedly.

"Maybe, but we've got to figure this one out. I don't think there's any way that you _could_ create an evil version of Max, so it has to be mind control. You were the one who got a few good close ups of his face, were there any scars that Max didn't have?" Berto questioned. Maxy was quiet for a moment, then she snapped her fingers.

"Yeah! Right below his left eye, he's got a two inch scar running up and down."

"Then we've got work to do. Come on," Berto said, standing. They left, heading for the TSO room.

"So, what's your big plan?" Maxy asked as they walked.

"Plant an X-ray in your eye, and find someway to get you to look straight at the scar," Berto replied. 

"Oh, fun," the brunette girl replied dryly.

*****

A few hours later, Maxy was fitted with a mini X-ray machine, which was invisible, even when activated. As Berto had said, it should be able to see the mind control device, if there was one. Almost immediately after, Maxy at least had fallen asleep, right in the operating room. She came out of her dream-state, and sat up on the metal table, feeling around her eye. She blinked, and found she could see fine. Then she noticed the younger Spanish agent off to one side of the room, working on something.

"It's almost eleven. Remember, I have to be at the beach house by five," Maxy reminded Berto.

"I don't think you should be going alone," Berto replied.

"You're getting worse than Josh about this whole safety thing," Maxy complained. "I'll be all right. He won't even be there, he's just calling on the phone. Besides, who could we get to go with me? Rachel and Jake are out. I'm not about to take someone who just got done being hospitalized, and Dad can't go, he's got his duties here, and there's no one else who I trust enough."

"Maybe you're right," Berto sighed in exasperation. Maxy stood up, and immediately dropped back down.

"You shouldn't be running around like you have been with your back so messed up," Berto scolded. 

"And the concussion, the bruises, the sprains..." Maxy added.

"Remind me again, how many times did he attack you?" Berto asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Me? Only twice. But he's on a regular violence spree,the older girl replied. 

"I know," Berto grumbled, rubbing the back of his head. The girl couldn't resist smiling at his expression, a pouting child that hadn't gotten a candy bar.

The teenage girl hung around N-tek for another few hours, trying to stay still for the sake of her injuries.

"Well, something interesting had to happen around here at some point," Berto noted, stretching. Aside from the cut which woiuld probably turn into a scar on his head, he felt fine. Maxy, however, had to feel much worse than she let herself look.

"Did it have to be something like this? I mean, we're having agents struck down left and right, and if this doesn't get resolved, we're gonna be permanently down two super-agents," the brunette intoned darkly. Berto rolled his eyes, trying to make the bad situation seem a little less threatening. If anything, it could help the stress. Maxy checked her watch again. 4:30, she'd be cutting it close.

"I better go. Stay online so you can hear what he says," the older brunette said. She started to stand, paused, then got up and hugged the slightly startled teenager. Without saying anything, she turned and left.

*****

She arrived at home twenty minutes later, pulling up and transforming _Star._

"This is way too complicated," she sighed, fumbling for her key. To her surprise, the door was already unlocked. Unnerved, she slowly opened the door, ready to dodge anything. She pulled it open completely, and stepped inside, then shut it. Before she could blink, a dark figure leapt from the shadows, slamming her against the door. Maxy exhaled sharply, then struggled. Her attacker kept her pinned tightly with one hand, and removed the mask with the other.

"Xam!" the captive squealed in a panic.

"I told you you shouldn't have gone alone, but I guess this solves the X-ray problem," Berto quipped from the control room.

"I really am glad I'm not in your shoes," Xam growled at Maxy's face.

"I guess," the brunette gasped sarcastically in response to both boys, struggling to relive the pressure on her rib cage.

"Uh, Maxy, you might want to break away or something..." Berto warned. Xam released her suddenly, keeping her pinned by both wrists against the door. She exhaled weakly, her sides on fire.

"Just out of curiousity here, why do you keep coming after me and Josh? I mean, you've already got the DNA from Josh," Maxy asked, looking up and focusing on the scar.

"I'm supposed to bring you back to the base at some point, and him as well. This is just to amuse me," Xam replied, almost flippantly.

"Give me one more second..." Maxy heard Berto mutter.

"Xam, do you actually know anything about Josh and I?" Maxy asked.

"Like what?"

"I love Josh, I care for him. He's my brother, after all. Why do you think I went to all the trouble I did to try to protect him? He'd do the same for me," Maxy stated sincerely. Xam let her go and took a step back.

"You're strangely like Josh. Your brother, the only thing he could think of, when he was awake, was if you were all right," Xam mused.

"Josh would die before he let me die, and I'm the same way," Maxy explained.

"I've got it," Berto announced. 

"If it makes any difference to you, I haven't hurt him since the attack at the N-tek base," Xam shurgged.

"But you almost killed Laura," Maxy replied emotionlessly.

"I don't know why I'm telling you all this. The device must be wearing off," Xam grunted. He stepped forward and handed Maxy a piece of paper.

"What is this?" she asked, looking at the paper.

"When you've chosen a meeting place and date for what will probably be our last stand-off, dial that number," Xam explained. Maxy thought for a minute, wondering why he wanted to meet, but decided against asking.

"Can I have your word that you won't hurt Josh before we meet?" she asked.

"I give you my word," Xam promised. Then he rushed at the surprised teen, slammed her against the door so hard Maxy heard the plastic brace crack, and felt a series of stabs of pain as the brace splintered, and stabbed into her stomach. 

"But I never said anything about hurting _you_. And if anyone besides you calls that number, I will go back on my word," Xam growled, and he was out the door before she could react.

"What was that about?" Berto questioned after he left.

"Did he break anything?" Maxy groaned, kneeling on the floor, arms hugging her body. She could hear soft typing in the background.

"No. Can you move?" Berto announced after a moment. The screen shifted from side to side, and blurred.

"So what do we do now?" Maxy choked out weakly, her forehead resting against the hardwood floor. She raised her head slightly, and placed a hand against her stomach. Red coated her palm, already soaked through the shirt she wore.

"You stay put. I'll be there as soon as I can," Berto replied.

"Wait a minute. You're coming here?" Maxy asked suddenly, still staring at her hand.

"Yeah..." the younger agent stated slowly.

"But I haven't had time to clean up around here since Xam trashed the place last time," she complained. Berto sighed in relief.

"Tough. I'm still coming," he replied, then headed out the door.

Twenty minutes later, Berto was driving _Shadow_ over to the twin's beach house. Beside him on the seat was a bag of medical supplies. He pulled up in the driveway next to _Star._

"Maxy?" he called, opening to door. A groan from behind the door answered him.

"What took you?" Maxy quipped weakly as he shut the door and knelt beside her. The bloodied and splintered brace was laying on the floor, along with a few chunks of broken plastic, also covered in blood.

"Traffic. You weren't kidding, this place is a wreck," Berto replied.

"Don't bad mouth my house," Maxy sighed in response. Berto mumbled an apology as he pulled her into a sitting position. With some help from her, he secured the bandages around her injuries.

"Come on," Berto muttered, lifting the brunette to her feet. With one hand on her mid-back, the other on her shoulder, he guided her to the couch.

"Ow..." Maxy breathed as she relaxed on the piece of furniture. She looked up at Berto.

"I thought you were going to carry me out to the car so I can clock more time in at N-tek's wonderful medical facility," she joked.

"No, I don't do that. Max is the one who carries beautiful women around," Berto replied, then blushed. Maxy cupped his chin in her hand, gently forcing him to look at her.

"You think I'm beautiful? Or are you saying you're secretly in love with Rachel or Laura?" she asked playfully.

"That first one," Berto replied quickly.

"I think you are very handsome, and I love you," Maxy said slowly, then kissed him, square on the lips. It was not a passionate kiss, just an "I love you" kiss. When she pulled back, Berto stared at her for a moment, as if gaging the amount of sincerity in her voice. 

"We have to figure out what to do next," Maxy said quietly.

"Like what? Xam attacking you like this wasn't part of the original plan," Berto asked.

"We'll have to improvise. It's not too hard. Ever since I found out Xam wasn't Max, nothing has been going right," Maxy replied.

"I analyized the mind-control device. It's not going to be easy to disable, but once it is, Xam should be acting pretty much like Max," Berto offered helpfully.

"You mean I'm going to have to deal with two over-protective brothers?" Maxy asked lightly.

"Do you ever stop cracking jokes?" Berto replied.

"Why? Does it annoy you?" Maxy questioned.

"No, I think it's cute," the Spanish teenager told her with a smile. Maxy shifted and tried to get up, then winced.

"I think I'm still hurt," she intoned.

"Whatever gave you that idea? Just lay back down," Berto replied. Maxy smiled and gripped his hand.

"If I do that, I'll fall asleep, and we have to be prepared. Look, go back to N-tek and try to contact Josh. If you can, then we can get everything ready much easier," Maxy ordered. Berto nodded, and left.

*****

The teenaged nano-tek expert finished checking possible ways of disabling the mind control device, and checking to see if they could contact Max, just as Rachel walked in.

"Berto, where are Max and Maxy? I haven't seen them," she asked.

"Maxy didn't tell you what's been going on?" Berto asked, looking up momentarily from his work. The blond nodded. An Asian man appeared behind her, it was Nez.

"Has anyone seen either of the Steel twins?" he questioned.

"I should have figured," Berto sighed, turning back to the controls. Rachel and Jake walked up to the teenager.

"What's going on, Berto?" Rachel quieried.

"Maxy is at the beach house, recovering from her most recent encounter with Xam, and probably from the other few times as well. I can't find Max's signal, but I did manage to reach him through the bio-link. He is supposedly with Xam," Berto explained, tearing off a print-out.

"Who's Xam?" Jake asked.

"Xam is the guy who attacked the three of us. He's Max's clone, only with a mind control feature that makes him violent," Berto replied, moving away from the control base. He started towards the door, when Rachel stopped him.

"Where are you going?" she wanted to know.

"Back to the beach house," Berto answered simply.

"We're going with you," Jake interjected.

"I don't think..." Berto started.

"We're part of Team Steel as well. Max and Maxy are our partners, too. If they're in trouble, it's our duty not only as their partners, but as senior agents, to help," Rachel cut him off. Berto, seeing he couldn't win this fight, since they were right, motioned out the door.

"Then we'd better get going."

*****

Though she felt sleep pulling at her mind, Maxy refused to give in. The door opened, startling her. To her relief, it was Berto, followed by Rachel and Jake.

"So you two have been dragged into this, too," she commented. Rachel came up to her.

"What happened?" she asked, looking at the bloodstains on the floor and on Maxy's uniform.

"Xam. This is what, the third time he's attacked me?" Maxy asked as Berto helped her sit up.

"I think so. How are you feeling?" 

"I'll be fine in a day or two, what with the max probes and your outstanding medical care," Maxy replied with a grin and a wink.

"Maintaining focus, do we have a plan?" Rachel asked. Maxy looked to Berto.

"Did you contact Josh?" she asked.

"I did. He was awake. Xam's got him tied up and gagged, though," Berto replied. Maxy nodded slowly.

"Then we do have a partial plan. And when it's complete, we can contact Xam," Maxy affirmed.

"What did you two have in mind?" Jake questioned.

"The only thing making Xam act like he is would be the mind control device. He's proven to Maxy especially that there's no way we could easily knock him out long enough to surgically remove it, so we'll have to disable it," Berto explained.

"And this device can be disabled how?" Rachel pressed.

"Extreme electric shock might do it," Berto replied.

"How extreme are we talking here?" Maxy piped up.

"At least two minutes at 5,000 volts," the nano-tek scientist shrugged.

"I'd think that would kill him," Rachel commented.

"True, but then, our resident Steel twins are electrocuted almost daily, and they're fine," Berto pointed out, nodding at Maxy.

"But that's a different kind of energy," Rachel argued, looking to Jake for help. He wasn't siding with either party.

"It's the same as normal electricity, just with some additives. Besides, the max probes would take the brunt of the energy once the device is destroyed," Berto replied deftly. Rachel sighed and shook her head.

"So where do we find someplace to trap Xam long enough to shock him with that much power?" the oldest female agent countered. Maxy and Berto were silent for a moment.

"The abandoned power plant outside Del Oro!" Maxy announced, snapping her fingers. Berto nodded in agreement.

"Wonderful. We've got our plan, now how do we get Xam down there?" Rachel asked.

"He gave me a number to call," Maxy replied simply.

"Then call."

"No. Not until we've made sure the plant will go that high. And we need to know the full lay out. If I remember right, there's a control tower where you can start the charge, and the doors can be shut from there as well," Maxy explained.

"How do you know all this?" Rachel questioned curiously.

"It's out by one of my favorite rock climbing spots. I fell over the fence once," the brunette clarified. Nez stood, as did Rachel.

"We'll go check it out. Berto, are you coming?" Rachel said.

"No. I'm staying with Maxy. But, could you give me a hand getting her to the car? We can get other parts of the plan set while you two are gone," Berto replied. Between Nez and Berto, Maxy was transferred out to _Shadow._

"We'll see you two back soon," Maxy grinned.

*****

Within two hours, Nez and Rachel returned to N-tek, and found the injured girl and Spanish teenager in the TSO room. Maxy had changed into a fresh uniform, and looked a little better.

"...hang in there, Josh. It's almost over," Maxy was saying into the bio-link. She clicked off as the pair walked in, and turned around with some difficulty.

"We checked everything, it was like you said," Jake offered.

"We talked to Josh. The plan is set," Maxy replied, painfully easing herself into a perching position on the edge of the console. "All the remains is fixing up the plant and calling Xam."

"And what is the plan after that?" Rachel pressed.

"I'll get Josh away from Xam and out of the target zone. Berto turns on the electricity, and we fry the mind block," Maxy explained.

"What part do Jake and I have in this?" the blond agent asked.

"Staying as far away as possible. If Xam catches me, or if I can't get Josh out of there, we can take the voltage. You two couldn't," Maxy replied calmly.

"We're going to help, wether you like it or not," Jake intoned.

"I'm saying this for _your _safety," Maxy snapped.

"And we're saying that you're going to need our help," Rachel snapped back. The two women looked ready to verbally duel it out, until Berto and Jake intervened.

"Maxy, we'll need all the help we can get, just stop being over-protective," Berto scolded. Nez said something the others couldn't hear to Rachel.

"Just be careful, then," Maxy sighed in defeat. 

"When should we set the meeting for?" Berto asked after a moment.

"The day after tomorrow, so I have a little time to recover," Maxy replied.

"Aren't you even slightly worried about leaving your brother with that mad man?" Rachel questioned.

"He's not a mad man, essentially, he's my twin brother also. Besides, Xam gave me his word that he wouldn't hurt Josh. I may sound crazy, but I believe him," Maxy shrugged. Rachel rolled her eyes.

*****

The next day, even though she clearly wasn't quite up to speed, Maxy insisted she was in good enough condition to be part of the fairly risky mission. 

"I'm going to visit Laura, then I'll call him," Maxy said to Berto as she transformed.

"What time are you planning to set for?" Berto asked in reply.

"Around 11:00 at night, tomorrow. Is that okay?" Kelly replied, pulling on her ponytail.

"I'll tell Rachel and Jake," was the Spanish teenager's response.

"We're taking two cars. You and I will go down a couple hours early to make sure everything is ready. Jake and Rachel can meet us there," the blond shrugged. 

"All right," Berto agreed. Kelly turned to the door, paused, then turned back around and threw her arms around Berto's neck.

"See ya later," she grinned, releasing him and heading for the door.

Ten minutes later, out on the highway, Kelly's white convertible headed for Del Oro Memorial Hospital, the hospital which Laura had been taken to.

"Hi, I'm Kelly McGrath, here to see Laura Chen," she greeted the receptionist at the entrance.

"Hold on a second," the woman replied, typing at the computer sitting before her. She looked up after a minute. "Fourth floor, room 406. The elevator's that way," the receptionist offered, pointing. Kelly thanked her, and took off down the hall. She stepped into the elevator with four other people, two in doctor uniforms, one who looked like a patient, and another visitor. The doctors got off on the third floor, and the visitor got off on the same floor as Kelly. She walked straight up to the desk.

"Which way is room 406?" she asked. The young man at the desk pointed down a hallway without looking up from the index cards he was filing. Kelly thanked him, and wandered down the hall.

"404...405...here we go, 406," Kelly muttered to herself. She stepped into the room, shielding her eyes from the bright morning sunlight filtering in through the window.

"Kelly, nice to see you," Laura greeted, seeing her boyfriend's sister.

"Laura. How are you feeling?" the blond returned, coming over to the bed. She sat down, careful not to show the pain of her recent injuries.

"Better. The doctors said I'm getting out in a few days," Laura smiled.

"That's great. But, I have to apologize. I didn't think that guy would be able to track Josh to your place," Kelly replied, looking at the floor.

"You were doing what you thought was best. I don't blame you for that," the Chinese teenager replied. She lowered her voice a few notches. "Did that guy get Josh?"

"Unfortunately. But he called me, and I'm going to get him back," Kelly assured.

"Don't do anything dangerous," Laura cautioned. Kelly had to smile.

"You're talking to the wrong girl. But I'll _try_ to be careful," Kelly replied. Laura sighed, her body sinking lower on the bed.

"You think Josh is all right?" she asked in a low sigh.

"I actually talked with him when the guy called. He's just fine," Kelly replied, setting the other girl's mind slightly at ease. A doctor came in then, and Kelly had to leave.

"Next time I come, I'll bring, Josh, if I can," Kelly promised, then disappeared.

Kelly blinked against the bright sunlight as she walked to her car. She dug into her pocket as she walked, pulling a piece of paper from her pocket.

"Where is it?" she grumbled to herself, digging through the glove compartment. A small cell phone fell out of the clutter of user's manuals and registration papers for various things on the car, thudding on the seat. Kelly picked it up and flicked it open. The car's interior filled with the steady bleeps of dialing. Kelly leaned back against the seat, listening to the vibrant ringing.

"Hello?" Xam's calm voice inquired.

"Hi. I think you know who this is," Kelly replied, a little icily.

"Ah, yes, the sister of my original. How's your side?" Xam intoned nicely.

"Oh, I'm fine. But I didn't call to trade pleasantries," Kelly snapped as casually as she could.

"I know that. So, when do you want to meet?" Xam questioned.

"The old power plant outside Del Oro, 11:00 p.m. tomorrow," Kelly responded.

"I can deal with that. I suppose you want me to bring your brother?" Xam asked.

"You know I do. Is it too much to ask that he's alive and awake when you meet me?" Kelly questioned carefully.

"Why?" Xam demanded sharply.

"It'll be a little easier for you if you don't have to drag him," Kelly offered.

"I'll buy that. Fine, see you tomorrow," Xam stated, then hung up. Kelly clicked off the phone, and dropped it on the seat before tuning her bio-link frequency.

"Berto, you there?" she asked, starting the car.

"Yeah. What did Xam say?" Berto replied.

"He's going to bring Josh, awake, to the plant," Kelly affirmed, turning the wheel.

"Good. Now get back here. You shouldn't be where he can get you easily," the Spanish teen replied.

"Don't start with the protectiveness stuff," Kelly warned, turning onto the road heading to N-tek.

*****

Kelly parked her car and jumped over the door. She gasped as pain shot through her mid-section, and landed on her knees.

"Is it that hard to remember you're hurt?" Berto asked through the bio-link.

"Psychiatrist, I'm hearing those voices again," Kelly replied, standing.

"Ha-ha, you're funny. You need any help? Knowing your luck, you probably sprained something," Berto added.

"My luck changes only when Xam is around," Kelly replied haughtily, transforming. She walked, somewhat stiffly, towards the entrance.

"You sure you're okay?" Berto asked, hesitantly.

"Berto, I've been beaten into unconsciousness almost once a day the last few days, I almost broke my back, and I was stabbed by a bunch of broken plastic. No, I'm not all right," Maxy stated in a tight, calm voice.

"Sorry, I'm just worried you're pushing yourself past your limits," Berto tried to calm her down. To his surprise, Maxy laughed.

"Berto, I went past my limit the day Xam attacked me the first time. I've been running on some extra power source for days. Come to think of it, I'll probably be permanently disabled by the time I have time to relax long enough to recover," she sighed. The teenage boy couldn't think of a response to that one.

Berto looked up to see Maxy come in, looking tired. She was staggering a like a drunk, actually.

"Come on, we have to go get that plant up and working," she reminded him. Berto stood up and walked over to her.

"Maxy, take a break. Rachel, Jake, and I can handle setting it up. You're going to need what strength you can get for tomorrow night," he suggested. The brunette shook her head.

"I'd never be able to sleep. Too much is going on," Maxy sighed. Berto shrugged, and turned back to the console to call the rest of Team Steel. He spoke for a minute, then clicked off the transmission.

"We can leave once they get here," he informed Maxy. The older teen sat down on the console, then arched her back sharply and jumped off.

"How much longer do I have to put up with this?" she grumbled, rubbing her spine.

"It would take less time if you didn't keep getting damaged, then running back for more. You've got one serious injury after another," Berto chided. Maxy rolled her eyes, and settled for leaning against the console. She winced, and pressed one hand to the bandages over her stomach.

"You're sure we got all the plastic shards?" she asked.

"Yevshenko said she did," Berto replied.

"Are you two ready to go?" Rachel asked, appearing at the door. Maxy and Berto looked up.

"As soon as Jake gets here," Maxy responded, easing away from her stationary support. 

"I passed him, he said he would be here shortly," Rachel replied. She nodded at the younger girl. "How are you feeling?"

"I'll be better once this is all over," Maxy shrugged. _In a few weeks,_ she added mentally.

"Sorry I'm late," Jake offered as he walked in.

"No problem. Come on, we've probably got our work cut out for us," Maxy returned. The four of them headed outside.

"Should we take two cars, or one?" Rachel questioned.

"One should be enough," Berto suggested. Jake and Maxy nodded, and they piled into Rachel's car, the said blond driving.

More than an hour later, they switched from paved road to a winding gravel road.

"This place is really out of the way," Jake commented.

"Probably so that young kids, and clumsy rock climbers, would be less likely to come up here," Berto mused. The gravel ping-ed loudly against the car's finish.

Rachel parked the car outside the gate entrance to the plant a little over twenty minutes later. She and Jake got out and headed for the gate. Berto got out, then turned to see why Maxy wasn't following. She was outside the car, leaning against the door, fast asleep. Berto grinned, somehow carefully dropped her back into her seat, and left to catch up with the others.

"Where's Maxy?" Rachel inquired when Berto appeared next to Jake.

"She was aleep, so I left her," he shrugged. "She hasn't gotten any rest for the last few days, aside from the blackout periods after Xam beats her up," he added.

"She's even more stubborn than Max," Rachel mused.

"No, she's just as protective. Do you think Max would be acting any differently if the situation was reversed?" Berto corrected. Rachel and Jake nodded in agreement.

*****

The three agents finished cleaning up and fixing everything in only a few hours. The whole time, Maxy was asleep, though someone went to check on her every half hour or so.

"I think that's it," Berto announced, wiping some sweat off his face. Rachel set down the hammer she'd been holding.

"Then let's go, shall we?" she asked. The trio left, shutting the gate doors behind them.

"I can't believe she's still asleep," Berto said as they got in the car.

"You said yourself, she hasn't been sleeping lately. It's catching up to her," Jake reminded him. Maxy stirred slightly, but then relaxed. 

They were halfway back when the sleeping brunette finally woke up. She yawned and slightly stretched, wincing when she arched her back.

"Where's the plant?" she asked drowzily.

"Back there," Berto replied, pointing in the opposite direction they were going.

"How come we're going away from it?" Maxy questioned.

"Rachel, Jake, and I fixed it up. You've been asleep for more than five hours," Berto informed her. Maxy blushed in embarrassment.

"Sorry," she mumbled.

"It's okay. We all know you're going to need whatever energy you can get," Jake said from the front seat. Maxy sighed, and slipped into an uneasy silence.

Back at the base, Maxy was still unusually quiet, and unsteady, though not nearly as bad as earlier.

"Maxy, maybe you should go try and get in a little more rest," Berto suggested.

"Nah, I think I'll go get a quick workout in," she replied, somewhat distractedly.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," Rachel replied. If Maxy heard her, she did not acknowledge it.

Ten minutes later, Maxy was down in the training center, throwing kicks at the newly re-installed suspended punching bag. Sweat ran into her eyes, blurring her vision and causing her to miss the bag. She whirled accidentally, and fell. _Maybe Berto was right, I should be resting,_ one part of her said as she picked her self up. Her other side insisted on training, however. She chose the second side, and steadied herself for another attack. She kicked a few more times, then dropped to the floor on her knees, stars swimming in her vision. She blinked fiercely, trying to blot them out.

"I told you," a voice scolded from the bio-link. Maxy registered Berto's voice.

"Psychiatrist, the voices..." the female Steel twin quipped dully.

"Very funny. But really, you should be resting, not over-taxing your already beaten system with extra work," Berto replied.

"Whatever could you be talking about?" Maxy asked, standing a little unsteadily and heading for some other equipment.

"You know what I mean. Maxy, you've had a concussion, multiple injuries, and you lost more blood than you think when that brace splintered," Berto chided.

"Yeah? That was yesterday and a few days ago. I'm fine now," Maxy tried to assure, angling to hit the pad of the machine before her.

"Which explains the light-headedness and why you're stumbling around like a drunk, and have the reflexes of a jar of grape jelly," Berto observed, watching as Maxy struck the mark, and it swung back, catching her across the chest and throwing her back.

"I'll take a break after we get Josh back," Maxy promised, moving to attack again.

"You might not last that long..." Berto cautioned, just as the swinging arm caught her across the face and sent her to the floor, out cold. Berto sighed deeply, and got up to go get her.

*****

Maxy woke up much later, laying on her bed, transformed, a sheet draped across her form. With a yawn, she sat up, threw the blanket off, and got off the bed.

"How'd I end up here?" she asked the walls, looking around. She hit her transform button, and re-did her ponytail. A glance at her watch revealed the time to be after 10:00 in the morning.

"You try to get a little more rest," Berto said through the bio-link.

"Are you stalking me?" Maxy asked tiredly.

"Just trying to stop you from keeling from exhaustion," Berto replied.

"I feel fine," Maxy assured calmly.

"Maxy, you've been saying that for days, even you have to admit it's not that convincing," Berto retorted. Maxy chuckled and tossed herself back on the bed, then whimpered with pain softly.

"Ok, I admit it. I'm not fine," she announced, raising one hand, then letting it drop.

"Glad we're making a breakthrough," Berto replied. Maxy didn't respond, she had fallen back asleep. Berto shook his head, and got up, certain that she would be out for at least a few more hours, to find the rest of their group.

When she woke up the second time five hours later, the young brunette felt much better. More focused, at the very least. Once again, she tidied her ponytail and left the room.

"Berto?" she called, looking into the TSO room. He wasn't there. "Wonderful," she muttered, going up to the controls. Out of habit, she glanced at her watch again. 3:00 in the afternoon, just a few more hours.

"You're looking steadier," Berto observed as he walked in. Maxy smiled as she turned around.

"I'm feeling better. For real," she replied, stretching. Her back barely twinged, though her stomach was a different story.

"I guess you just needed some time to heal without running around," Berto suggested.

"Maybe. Where are the others?" she asked.

"I couldn't find them, but then, we both know they've got other missions," Berto replied.

"Oh, yeah. I forgot. Josh and I are just used for heavy lifting," Maxy grinned playfully.

"You think? More like we would, if you two weren't off rescuing each other from Dread bases all the time," Berto quipped.

"Now I know you're picking up on my personality," Maxy smiled at him, then turned to the console.

"Which frequency did you find Josh on?" she asked absently. Berto leaned over and twisted a dial.

"Josh, you there?" Maxy asked eagerly. A series of muffled noises came across the line, sounding a little panicked.

"Calm down, bro. It's just me, Kelly," Maxy clarified quickly. She turned to Berto.

"I can't believe he's still got the gag on," she said softly.

"He could be at a motel or something," Berto replied. Maxy nodded in agreement, and turned back to the speaker.

"Josh, everything's going like we planned. Just try to stay calm, and everything'll be all right," Maxy assured. Josh tried to say something, then quieted. The air of tenseness could be felt on Maxy and Berto's side.

"Is she trying to call you?" Xam's voice asked. Maxy gasped and switched off the transmission before Xam could turn on the speaker on the bio-link and catch them.

"We've got a few more hours, what to do..." Maxy sighed.

"I'd say training, but it would be bad if you fainted again right before the most important part of the rescue," Berto offered.

"True, how about a drive?" Maxy asked.

"Smith wouldn't want you away from N-tek with Xam on the loose," Berto replied.

"Okay then...want to show me how to play chess?" Maxy asked with a grin. Berto's smile matched hers, and he opened up his favorite program.

*****

Rachel and Nez arrived back a the base around 4:00, and headed for the TSO room, where Berto was taking Maxy through the harder points of chess. Maxy looked up when they came in.

"Hey, where were you two? On a mission?" Maxy asked. Rachel nodded, a little tiredly.

"A 35 year old with a home-made bomb had a building full of kids hostage. It turned out the man, a certified psychopath, had made his bomb out of plastic, some metal, and whipped cream, which he threw at us," Nez explained.

"I wouldn't think you two would look this tired if you just got some dairy product on your uniform," Maxy quipped. Rachel snorted, and involuntarily placed a hand on her side.

"Did we mention the five-hour stand-off and that the bomb included a couple razor blades?" she asked. Maxy nodded sympathetically, her own stab wounds twinging with pain.

"Are you two going to be up for the meeting?" Berto asked next.

"I will, the blade just nicked me. What about you, Rachel?" Nez replied, looking his partner.

"I'll be ready," Rachel assured before turning to leave. Maxy shrugged and turned back to the game of chess she was working on.

*****

Four hours later, the first pair of the group was leaving. Maxy and Berto were going up early to double check everything.

"Let's hope this works," Maxy intoned as they sped down the highway. Berto nodded his agreement. Maxy winced slightly as pain flicked across her stomach.

"We should have given you a few more days to regenerate," Berto observed.

"I should have, but getting Josh back is more important," Maxy replied, her eyes still on the road.

"Not if he's fine save for a rope burn, and you're barely holding together," Berto interjected. Maxy shot him a look, but said nothing.

They were almost halfway there when the accident happened. Maxy was taking a sharp curve, and a semi-truck was going around the same curve. Maxy heard the truck first, but Berto saw the huge truck an instant before she did. Both screamed as Maxy tried to swerve to the side. The truck just barely clipped their car, but then _Star_ spun out of control.

"Berto, heads up!" Maxy shouted. She grabbed him by the arm, and jumped from the swirling vehicle. They went over the side of the metal rim, and tumbled down the hill, which was, fortunately, not to long and steep. They thudded to a stop fifteen feet past the base of the hill. Berto got to his knees, and stayed there, checking for any serious injuries. Maxy, laying beside him on her back, started laughing.

"I'm not seeing what's so funny about us almost getting killed," Berto grumbled, getting to his feet. Maxy giggled another minute, then sat up.

"That's what's so funny, that we're still alive after that. Come on, let's go see how badly the thing's bashed up. Maybe we can still drive it," she chuckled, standing.

"Did you hit your head? Maxy, _we're _lucky to be alive! The only thing that saved us was you taking that jump," Berto replied as they started walking towards the hill.

"You're welcome," the brunette replied, her sides still heaving slightly with unused laughter.

"I think you went a little too far past your mental limits, a few days ago," Berto observed.

"What, how many other people on the planet would start laughing if they got a in car crash and survived, more or less unharmed?" Maxy retorted.

"Besides you, I can't think of anyone else," Berto quipped smartly.

"Oh, you're real funny," Maxy said quietly as they ascended the hill. They found the car ten yards down the road from where Maxy swore they jumped, crushed and embedded in the cliff wall. Berto examined the wreck and sighed in exasperation. Maxy stared at the destroyed car, then dropped to her knees in a fit of laughter.

"We'd better call Rachel and Jake," Berto decided. "Where's my phone?" he muttered, patting his side. Still giggling, Maxy pointed at the car.

"Yeah, I know, the car being crushed like an accordian is hilarious," Berto said. Maxy shook her head as she fought to control herself, and got to her feet.

"No, I'm saying, if you want your phone, it's somewhere in that piece of scrap metal," she clarified with a shrug. 

"How do you know?" Berto questioned, curiousity getting the better of him.

"It fell out of your pocket when we jumped, but if it didn't, then it fell when we were going down the hill. Either way, you should have had it better secured," she scolded.

"Don't tell me yours is in there too," Berto sighed. 

"No, it isn't. Besides, if it was, I could still use the bio-link," Maxy assured, pulling her communications device from a sling caught in her ponytail.

"Interesting place," Berto noted. Maxy shrugged, flipping it open and dialing Rachel's number.

"Hi, Rachel. It's Maxy. Uh, we've got a problem here...no, no, it's nothing to do with Xam, amazingly. Um...we had an accident, and _Star_ is totalled. No, we're fine, jumped clear before it crashed," Maxy said into the phone.

"Uh, Maxy..." Berto stuttered, looking at the car. Fuel leaked from the gas tank, and he could hear sparks from under the hood. Maxy waved her hand at him, and continued speaking. A spark touched the gas, and the car blew, throwing the two agents back. Fortunately, they had been standing far enough away that they were in no danger from the actual blast. However, that didn't offer too much protection for them from the shockwave. They landed a short distance away.

"This trip just keeps getting worse and worse..." Maxy muttered into the phone. She looked around. "Berto, are you...oh, man!" she added, rushing over to him. He was balancing on his knees, one hand clapped over his right arm. 

"What happened?" Maxy heard Rachel ask over the phone. She ignored the device, and dropped it on the ground. However, the sensitive speaker still picked up the conversation.

"Oh my gosh, Berto! Here, let me see..." the girl was heard saying.

"I'm fine, just a little cut..." Berto replied in the sterotypical tough guy tone.

"This isn't a little cut, it's a gash. I think it caught a vein," Maxy said in reply, her voice laced with worry.

"It isn't as serious as some of your most recent injuries," the Spanish teenager retorted smartly.

"True, yours is worse. All of mine, generally, weren't bleeding. Come on, we've got to patch this up..." Rachel heard Maxy say, then the line went dead. Jake, who had come in in time to hear the last few exchanges, asked what was going on.

"Apparently _Star_ crashed, and just exploded. It sounds like Berto was injured by the blast," Rachel explained, standing. "Come on, we should go try to find them."

Maxy led her partner over to a point that would be sheltered in case the car decided that one explosion wasn't enough, and tried, using her hand, to stop the bleeding.

"Why did we have to have plastic-coated uniforms?" Maxy muttered, pressing her hand down firmly.

"To provide some partial protection," Berto replied through his teeth.

"I wasn't expecting a reasonable answer. Just don't fall asleep," Maxy sighed. The medical kit was in the flaming wreckage that had once been her car. Bero clenched and unclenched his jaw, trying to block out the pain.

"You know what works for me?" the female agent asked after a moment.

"What? Getting another injury?" Berto asked painfully.

"Cute, but no. It can help to think of something else," Maxy grinned, patting his uninjured arm. The rumble of an engine announced the arrival of a car. Both teens looked up.

"Knowing our luck, that's probably Xam," Maxy sighed. Berto said nothing. The van came to a stop a few yards away. Maxy turned to Berto. "Do you recognize that?"

"No," the younger teen replied. The occupants got out, and the teenage agents sighed in relief. Rachel and Jake ran up to them.

"Hi," Maxy greeted. Rachel knelt beside them, then told Nez to get the medical pack out of their car. He nodded and went back to the van.

"Anyone care to tell me how this happened? Because I highly doubt even Maxy's luck would be this bad," she asked, inciting a glare of indignation from the brunette.

"The car spun out when I swerved to dodge the semi-truck. Then we jumped out of the car, fell down the hill..." Maxy explained as Nez came back with the kit.

"And you started laughing," Berto finished. Rachel shot Maxy a curious look, to which the brunette shrugged and took her hand away from the gash in the youngest agent's arm. She stared at the her red-smeared palm, feeling nauseated. Nez tapped her shoulder.

"Are you hurt?" he asked. Maxy smiled at him.

"Amazingly, not this time," she assured. Rachel sat back on her heels.

"This should keep until we get back," she announced, as Maxy helped Berto up.

"You gonna make it?" she asked as they headed for the van.

"I think so," Berto replied. 

*****

Half an hour later, they finally got to the plant. The bleeding had slowed, and stopped, much the everyone's relief. However, the young teenager was having mild difficulty moving the limb.

"Let's hope there wasn't anything that needed fixing up. It's after 10:30," Maxy quipped as thery got out. She surveyed the structure, then turned back to the group.

"Okay, we all know our postions? Then let's get ready," the female brunette said, heading for the center of the viewing area. Berto went past her to the main control room, and Jake and Rachel stayed back to help Maxy if she was having trouble with Xam.

"Show time," Maxy muttered. Outside, a car pulled up, and a door opened, then almost a minute later, it slammed. Muffled shouts and calm warnings mixed with scuffled steps, then Xam and Josh appeared. Josh, struggling wildly and duct-taped across the mouth and around the wrists, calmed somewhat when he saw his sister.

"Hello, Miss Steel," Xam greeted, struggling slightly with his captive.

"Hi there," Maxy replied. Josh looked from one to the other in confusion, eyes wide.

"Before I knock you, and your partners, yeah, I know they're here, unconcious, I wondered if you'd want to discuss our little...conflicts," Max's clone replied.

"Conflict? The only problem I see is you continously attacking me and people I know. We haven't out right attacked you, only defended ourselves," Maxy snapped icily.

"I'd been almost hoping you'd come with me quietly, if only to be with your brother," Xam lamented with a shrug. Maxy thought about it, looking down at the ground. She looked up, casually moving one hand behind her back. She flashed the hand signal at Berto, up in the control room, and moved quickly. She shot forward, grabbed her brother by the arm, and jerked him back. They took off, and Maxy heard the electricity begin to power up. Josh suddenly stopped cold. Maxy turned to see what was wrong, when a heavy kick landed on her right side, throwing her back, and her brother's arm out of her grip. She hit the ground a few feet away, the air knocked out of her. Xam, holding onto Josh, started to back out to the gate. Then the charge hit. It caught both Xam and Josh in the brunt of the surge, but also sent fairly powerful zaps around as well. Maxy staggered to her feet, and started forward. A bolt partially struck her, exploding and throwing the girl back. She struck the wall almost ten feet back. Rachel and Nez ran around to where she lay, and checked her condition. She was already starting to get up, but with all her newest injuries adding to the old, the two of them could keep her down. Even so, she still fought them, weakly.

"What about Josh?!" she demanded.

"He can take it for a little longer," Rachel assured. "How badly do you think you're hurt?" she added, trying to redirect the teenager's focus.

"If he didn't break anything with that kick, I'll be shocked," Maxy sighed in response. The three knelt or lay in silence for another minute, until Berto turned off the power. Josh and Xam collasped on the ground, both unconcious. Berto came down from the control room, as Rachel and Jake were pulling Maxy to her feet.

"Come on, let's get them in the car," Rachel sighed. Berto and Rachel told Maxy to go wait in the car after she fell down trying to get Josh up. With a sigh, she headed for the car.

After only ten minutes, the rest of the group was in the vehicle. Fortunately, the van was large. After they pulled out of the spot they'd been parked at and were heading back, Maxy resumed her efforts at waking her brother.

"Josh, come on!" she sighed, shaking his shoulder.

"Maxy, he took a lot of voltage. Give him longer than fifteen minutes," Berto chided. Maxy snorted in exasperation, and sat back, folding her arms across her abdomen. She looked over at the two unconcious boys.

"I never realized how little Max and Josh look alike," she noted, nodding at them.

"It's hard to tell until you see them next to each other," Berto agreed.

"How long are they going to be out?" the brunette added, putting a hand on her brother's shoulder.

"At least a few hours, we won't know until they've been examined," the Spanish teenager replied. Maxy sighed, dropping both hands to her lap.

"You and I are going to need check-outs, too," she reminded him. Berto waved his hand in a dismissive gesture.

"It doesn't even hurt anymore," he assured.

"Well, let's not risk it getting infected. You're getting that cleaned out," the female agent replied. Berto nodded at her side.

"What about you?" he questioned.

"I'm going to have an X-ray. Trust me, it hurts more than it looks," she stated calmly.

"Glad to see you are taking responsibility for your health, Miss Steel," Rachel called from the front. Maxy smiled slightly and stuck her tongue out.

"Now that Josh is safe, I can think about how bad off I am," Maxy replied with a slight groan.

*****

A few hours later, Josh came to, and found himself in his room. He yawned, and looked around. He was wearing a black T-shirt and jeans, and Kelly was sitting in a chair next to the bed, dressed in jeans, red T-shirt and black vest, sound asleep. He sat up and shook his head. A slight yawn sounded next to him, and his sister woke up. She smiled at him drowzily.

"Welcome back. I meant to be up when you woke up. How long you been up?" she asked.

"A few minutes. Anyone want to explain the last few days?" he replied, stretching.

"Too much. Give it some time. I don't really think either of us is really in condition for much. Let's just start with: you were cloned. Remember that? Your clone's name is Xam," Kelly sighed, tugging on her ponytail.

"I remember that. And some stuff from the plant. What happened up there?"

"We can talk later. Right now, I can't handle any more than that you're safe," Kelly replied, giving him a gentle hug. Josh returned it, a little harder, and frowned when she tensed up and pulled away.

"Are you okay? You're not acting like yourself," he observed.

"Not really. Okay, that is. I'm going to be out of action for a while," Kelly explained.

"What happened?" Josh pressed, his concern rising.

"You're just going to stress out that you weren't there for me, I know you, Josh," the blond replied instead, brushing back a strand of hair.

"I'm already doing that. Just spill," he said sternly. Kelly shot him a smile.

"You're not going to give up, are you?" she asked quietly, reciving a nod.

"Quit stretching it out," he told her firmly.

"Okay, let's see...back injury, which I'm just getting over, a few hundred bruises, concussion, probably sprained something when I fell off _Hawk_ and _Crane_ a few times, a few stab wounds from a shattered brace, and oh yeah, I broke a couple ribs at the plant," Kelly listed rapidly, watching her brother's eyes flash as she listed each thing. Involuntarily, she placed a hand over her side.

"How did all that happen?" Josh asked, not believing that even Xam could have done all that damage in a few days.

"Xam," Kelly replied. Josh sighed heavily. "Don't start with the 'I should have been there,' you were out most of the time," Kelly warned.

"I know that. But I still feel that way. Tell me, how many people did my clone attack?" Josh sighed. Kelly thought for a minute, counting on her fingers.

"Six. Berto, Rachel, Jake, you, me...and Laura," the female blond replied. 

"Laura?" he asked weakly. Kelly nodded, looking at the ground. "How badly?" Josh pressed.

"She's in the hospital, but she should be getting out soon," Kelly explained.

"Why?" the young man muttered, pressing his palms into his forehead.

"I took you to her dorm. I didn't know what to do. It was right after we got out of the Dread base. You collasped as soon as we came out of the vent, and Laura's place was the only place I could think of. Xam was still on the loose, so I couldn't risk leaving you here or trying to take you to N-tek. I didn't think Xam would go there. I'm sorry," Kelly blabbered in a watery tone. Josh smiled at her. 

"Why do I get the feeling you've been saying that a lot lately?"

"Maybe 'cause I am," she replied. From the guest room, sounds of someone getting up emitted.

"Who's here?" Josh questioned immediately.

"Xam," Kelly shrugged. Her brother shot her a surprised look.

"Xam, as in my clone?" he asked, as footsteps came closer.

"Yeah. What's wrong?" his sister shrugged.

"Kelly, have the last few days blanked out for you? Xam has attacked both of us, and our partners and friends," Josh asked, slightly angrily.

"He had a mind control device below his eye," Kelly explained patiently, tapping under her own left eye. A teenager who looked like Max appeared at the door. Josh tensed, and Kelly waved him over.

"Josh, would you chill out?" Kelly sighed, standing. She grabbed Xam by the hand, directed him to the chair, and pushed him into it.

"Kel, how are we going to explain_ him_ to Laura and Pete?" Josh asked icily.

"Josh, try and be a little more open-minded. Think of Xam as your...twin," Kelly replied, completely ignoring his question. She walked towards the door.

"I already have a twin," the boy grumbled.

"Yeah, I know. So do I. In fact, I'm a triplet now, and so are you," Kelly called from the hallway. She headed for the kitchen, planning to make breakfast and hoping her brother and his clone were getting along. That was shattered when angry shouts erupted from Josh's room. Kelly sighed, and turned back around to break it up, when the shouting stopped. A little concerned, Kelly whipped into the room. Both boys were standing there, silent, glaring at each other. Kelly ran up to them, and put a hand on Xam's shoulder. He didn't move, scaring her even more. She waved her hand in the space between their faces, and both blinked, staggered back, and fell, over either the bed or chair, respectively. Kelly giggled, out of relief, and helped Xam up.

"What were you two doing? You lost our reality for a second," she said to both boys. Neither of them were exactly certain what had happened, only that they had been able to understand each other without words. Kelly thought for a moment.

"Now, I know it wasn't because you get along so well, so it's gotta be...wait a sec! Hold on, stay here, and don't fight or something," said Kelly before she ran out the door. Both teens refrained from eye contact with each other. The third triplet in the group arrived quickly, holding a few sheets of paper. 

"Here, take a look at these," she said holding it out. Both of them looked at it, and handed them back to her.

"No idea. They look like heart monitor print outs," Xam shrugged.

"It's not that. These are brain wave pattens for both of you. Berto and I took them before we came home. They look like normal waves, but they've got a glitch. Berto thinks it was caused by the electric shock, but I was hit too, and my waves are normal. Josh, yours didn't have that blip in there before. And Xam, as his clone, you didn't either," Kelly explained.

"So what's your point?" Xam asked in a slightly bored tone, wincing as Josh stood and elbowed him in the side. Kelly frowned at her original brother.

"Josh, be nice. My point is, Berto and I knew you two would have some sort of after effect from the incident, but we weren't sure what it would be. From the looks of it, the effect is a telepathic link between the two of you," Kelly finished.

"Okay. Kel, how are we going to explain two Joshes to Laura and Pete?" Josh questioned.

"First of all, I already talked to both of them. Officially to them, and unofficially to us, Xam is our cousin. Second, there is no clone of Josh McGrath, only Max Steel. Put it this way: Xam was created using your DNA when you're Max. Though you can switch between the two, your DNA changes, you know, with the hair and eyes and even features. Because of this, Xam can't switch to Josh, and he doesn't have a bio-link. If he's gonna be on the team, we'll have to get him one. He does, however, have the max-probes, because they were in your DNA," Kelly took a deep breath after she finished.

"Then how was he stronger than us and how come he never collasped from low T-juice levels?" the fairly indignant teenager wanted to know. Kelly reached up and tapped the scar running under Xam's eye. Her brother nodded in understanding.

"Everyone thought I was you. It was easy to get to the generator," Xam shrugged. He looked at his watch, and got up.

"I'd better get ready. I've got to be back at N-tek to get the bio-link and everything," he reminded them, getting up.

"You need a ride?" Kelly offered. Xam smiled and shook his head.

"Jake's picking me up," he explained, leaving. Kelly turned back to Josh, who was still sitting on the bed.

"Could you try to make a better effort at getting along? The mind control device blocked out his own choice of what he did, but didn't stop him from knowing what he was doing. Xam feels even worse about this than we do," Kelly told her brother.

"How do you know all this?" Josh asked calmly.

"The device took most of the charge, so Xam was out for only a few hours. I never passed out, and you were out for almost another day. We're assuming whatever Dread's bunch gave you, plus what Xam gave you combined with the electricity did it," Kelly explained.

"What, you guys did a blood scan?" Josh questioned, yawning a little. He wasn't even close to being back up to speed. His sister nodded, and sat down on the bed.

"Yeah. You had at least four different sleep drugs in your system. Most of them are probably still there," she explained, tapping his chest, then pushing him firmly, but gently, into a laying postion.

"You should try to get a little more rest. Drug induced unconciousness isn't exactly the same as a good night's sleep," Kelly suggested. She got up and left the room. Josh sighed and looked up at the ceiling. Before he knew it, he was back asleep. Kelly went back to finish fixing breakfast for herself, satisfied that he would be out for at least a few hours. She called Laura to tell her that Josh was awake, and seemed fine, then went outside to get some fresh air. 

*****

Xam's new motorcyle, _Thunder_, roared as it pulled up outside the house. He got off, taking off his helmet. He looked up at the porch, and grinned. Kelly was on the porch railing, sound asleep and ready to fall off the rail. He checked his watch. It was only 4:00. But then he remembered how much stress she'd been though, what with her brother being gone, and all the injuries. A pang of guilt shot through him. Being as quiet as possible, he walked up, picked her up, and carried her inside. The house was quiet, Josh was out or something. He laid her on the couch, and went to the kitchen to find something to eat. He was biting into an apple when Berto tried calling him.

"Xam, are you there?" he asked. The teenager gasped in surprise, and choked on the apple. Berto raised one eyebrow as he listened to the teen until he coughed up the piece of apple. Breathing hard, he put one hand on the counter.

"Is there any way for you to warn me before you do that?" he asked.

"Sorry. It takes a little time to get used to. Max and Maxy were the same way," Berto replied. Xam rubbed his neck, and dropped the apple in the trash. The thud and crackle of it brought Kelly awake. She sat up and yawned.

"Hey, I was outside," she realized. Xam chuckled and walked up to her.

"I brought you in when I got home. Where's Josh?" he asked.

"He fell back asleep after you left. I guess he's still out," Kelly replied. Xam leaned against the couch and sighed.

"I know I've said it a hundred times, and I know you accept, but still, I'm very sorry," he intoned. Kelly got up and hugged him, carefully because of her injuries.

"I don't blame you for something Dread did. Give Josh sometime to think with a clear head, and he won't either. You're the only one still beating yourself up over it," she replied. She moved away to go check on Josh. Xam caught her by the arm.

"Thank you," he said with a smile. Kelly returned it.

"Hey, Josh, you up?" she called softly, poking her head into his room. He was still out. She rolled her eyes, and shut the door.

"He's still asleep," she reported to Xam. He nodded, then sighed.

"I'm not going to be surprised if he hates me," Xam muttered.

"He wouldn't. He won't," Kelly said confidently, then paused. "Why would he?" she asked after a moment.

"Besides the attacks on him, I could have killed you, more times than once. And after what happened at Laura's dorm, I don't think he'd trust me," Xam sounded choked.

"Josh knows it wasn't your fault. Nothing you did is permanent. Dad gave us a week to recover and get everything straightened out," Kelly tried to reassure him. She winced lightly, hand moving automatically to her side.

"You okay?" Xam asked instantly. Kelly grinned at him.

"I'm fine. I'll go talk to Josh a little," she replied, the turned and headed out to her brother's room. He was awake now, and sitting up.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" he asked with a hint of his usual perk. His sister beamed at him, and eased onto the edge of the bed.

"Xam wants to talk it out with you, but I don't want another stand-off like before. So, I thought we should talk first. We covered the basics before Xam left, now we get into the deeper stuff," she began, absently smoothing out a wrinkle in the fabric.

"Like what?" Josh replied, watching her with a hint of amusement as she picked at the cloth, a bird picking at bread crumbs.

"To get most of your anger out of the way, and so you can talk to him without having a confrontation," the female blond lamented.

"Don't worry about that happening. I understand what happened with Xam," Josh replied. Kelly blinked and tilted her head to the side.

"A dream?" she asked curiously. Josh shook his head.

"I was awake for maybe an hour at some point. I thought about it, and I understand," he explained. Kelly nodded and got up.

"Well, if you think you're up to it, I'll send him in," she offered.

"Maybe the three of us should talk," Josh suggested suddenly.

"Xam kind of wanted to talk to you without me around, but if it'll keep you two from gettin' into that staredown thing again," Kelly replied.

"Yeah, but this'll make more sense if all three of us know what was said," Josh argued. Kelly, deciding it was an impossible battle, sighed and went to get Xam. Both of them came back in seconds later. Kelly perched on the desk while Xam grabbed the chair by the bed. The three teenagers were silent, contemplating their words.

"This changes everything," Josh said after a long pause. Kelly and Xam nodded in agreement.

"Maybe for the better. Now there's three of us," the girl interjected reasonably.

"It's going to take some adjusting," Josh added thoughtfully. His sister grinned at Xam.

"Come on, add something to the conversation! You're as much a part of this group as either of us," she teased. To assert her words, she went over and gave him a hug, then winced. Both boys gave her worried looks, and she giggled.

"See? You two act alike. Xam, none of what happened was your fault. No one here is holding you responsible, right, Josh?" she said brightly. Josh nodded, communicating with the telepathic link that had been forged between them.

"Sorry, just I don't feel as much like a part of the team as you think I should. I can't get over that I could have killed someone, especially since that someone would have been one of you two," he sighed. Kelly exchanged a look with Josh, wishing she and him had the same link.

"You know, maybe we should work on bonding instead of discussing something which it seems is kinda one-sided," Kelly suggested intelligently. Both boys nodded their agreement.

"But, that's gonna be hard to do, with one of us _supposed_ to be bed-ridden," Josh added, glaring pointedly at Kelly. She returned a look of mock innocence, and got up.

"What could you be talking about, dear brother? I'm perfectly fine," she replied haughtily with a stiff pose, then immediately sank to her knees. Xam came up and knelt beside her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"If you don't settle down, then you'll never heal right," he scolded. She grinned softly.

"Oh, give me a day or two, and I'll be good as new. Just don't worry about it. I've been through worse, trust me," she assured. She manuvered around to lean against the side of the bed, still sitting on the floor, and Xam settled beside her. The two original twins relaxed into talking about various things, mostly to let Xam get to know them. Digging up little bits of their lives they'd nearly forgotten. Kelly's first gymnastics meet, Josh's first time surfing. They never touched the subject of the Xam's brief stay at the Dread base; this was supposed to be a relaxing, "get to know your new siblings" evening. 

Xam had fallen asleep in the middle of a fairly boring description of the attitude of Kelly's old english teacher, several hours after the trio had settled down. Kelly stopped talking when Josh poked her and gestured to his clone. Kelly chuckled softly, and rested her head lightly on his shoulder.

"Guess the excitment of Mrs. Yarei's castinet teaching style was too much for him," she said quietly to Josh, who nodded, then yawned. Kelly closed her eyes, and was also asleep minutes later. Josh was out shortly after her. The girl was right, the excitment was too much, but for all of them.

  


_Okay, that was a pretty fair ending, but I still can't get it just right. Next up is "Going Turbo." See ya there! Adding another character, now even more confusing!_

-Maxy Steel


	4. Going Turbo

_General disclaimer: The TV show Max Steel is not mine, though I really wish it was. It belongs to a number of companies whose names escape my memory at the moment, but my name wasn't on that list, if I recall. Kelly McGrath/Maxy Steel, Xam Steel are my characters, __and Turbo is the creation of me and my friend, __and I will set my corgi-beagle on you if you use their names or their characters without my permission. Enough of that, on with the story!_

  


**GOING TURBO**

**BY:**

**Maxy Steel**

  


**Timeline: About two months after "Meet My Clone."**

  


Team Steel had just gotten word that they had the day off, and Maxy, of course, was especially thrilled. Rachel, Berto, and Jake had already left.

"I don't know about you two, but I'm heading for the beach," Maxy informed her brother and his clone as she transformed back into Kelly. Max shrugged in indifference, and Xam nodded.

"I promised Laura I'd meet her at Cafe Cafe," Max replied, also transforming. Xam grinned.

"Can I come?" he asked, an innocently pleading look on his face. Josh looked thoughful for a moment.

"Only if you don't flirt with Laura. She's mine," he jokingly told his look-alike. Kelly laughed at Xam, who nodded by way of promising. Only she could see him cross his fingers as he did. Josh, however, only had to look at his brother to know.

"Sure you won't," the teenager grinned. Kelly moved ahead of the boys.

"I'll leave you to negotiate. I'm gone," the blond female announced, turning to her car. She turned waved at her brothers before hopping into the driver's seat. She revved the engine, and was gone. Xam grabbed the handles of his motorcycle, and sped off. The third member of the trio figured he would show up at Cafe Cafe later.

*****

Kelly made one quick stop off to change into a swim suit, with shorts and a knotted white tee over it, and to grab her surf board. Ten minutes later, she was picking out a place on the relatively empty beach.

"It's such a nice place. Wonder where everyone is," the teenager commented as she entered the water. And was nearly run down by a water jet a mere five yards from shore.

"Hey!" Kelly screamed at the departing water mobile, spitting water from her mouth. The guy whipped back around, and shot back at her. Kelly tensed, ready to dive. Instead, the guy pulled to a stop next to her, angling carefully to not splash her again.

"Hey, what's a babe like you doing all alone?" the man leered at her. Kelly studied him. Broad build, dyed dark red hair, leery grin. Weight lifter who won't take "no" for an answer. She knew the type, and remembered dating one in college. Good for heavy lifting, but not much else.

"My boyfriend works. I just got out of college," she replied easily, pulling herself up on her board, sitting with her legs still in the water from the knee down. The guy thought for a moment, then held out his hand to her.

"Come on, I'll take you for a ride," he offered. Kelly smiled at him, and shook her head.

"Thanks, but no. My guy's kinda protective," the teenager replied.

"He doesn't have to know," the guy pressed. The blonde shook her head again, and repeated her response. He grabbed her hand, her left hand. Kelly struggled, more out of surprise than anything, and partial panic. She couldn't go turbo with his large hand covering her watch, and a guy with muscles like his could easily overpower her in normal mode.

"Let go of me!" she shouted, bringing her right hand down in a karate chop move on his grip. He grinned at her, attempting to pull her onto his water jet.

"You're stronger than I thought. But, I like ones who fight," he smirked.

"And just what do you think you're trying to do with my sister?" a voice called angrily.

Kelly and her captor looked over. Josh was standing on the shore, his board in one hand.

"This is your sister?" the weight lifter asked, holding Kelly up by her trapped arm.

"Put her down," Josh snapped, setting his board down. The man contemplated the situation. Then he leaned forward, looped his arm around Kelly's shoulders, and jerked her onto the jet, taking off as soon as she was caught.

"Josh, I need some help!" Kelly shouted over her shoulder.

"All he's got is a surf board. He'll never catch up. You're mine," the guy laughed. Kelly jammed her elbow into his chest, causing a slight wince.

"Take that, loser," Kelly snapped. He twisted her wrist. In spite of herself, the N-tek agent cried out.

"Take that, girl," he replied, a touch of malice in his voice.

"Excuse me," a familiar voice said, accompanied by a tap on the shoulder to the water ski driver.

"What the--" the guy growled, turning. Josh, on his jet powered surf board, was riding right next to them.

"I hate hitting a guy from behind," the young man explained, drawing back and slugging his sister's captor in the jaw. In surprise and pain, the guy loosened his grip somewhat on Kelly. In a fluid motion, Josh slammed his palm into the man's chin, grabbed Kelly by the arm, and pulled her from the craft. She landed on the slick surface, slipped, and fell to her knees on the board. Josh steadied her with one hand while they took off, leaving the man holding his jaw, and shouting at them. Josh guided the surfboard up near Kelly's, who jumped off his and onto hers, and they brought them in, dropping the gear on the sand.

"Well, that's one way to spend the afternoon," Kelly commented, standing.

"You want me to go back and punch his face in? Might stop him from pulling that stunt on some other girl," Josh offered, visibly angry. The female twin rolled her eyes. _I'm a big girl, he doesn't have to be my guardian angel,_ she thought, a touch of irritability in her thoughts.

"Oh, Josh. You're so protective," she laughed aloud.

"No, I'm worried. What if I hadn't shown up?" the male blonde replied.

"I would have been able to handle it. He couldn't have held onto me forever," his sister assured, sounding indignant.

"Sorry, but you're my sister. And I'm not about to let anything happen to you," the young man sighed, shaking water from his hair.

"I can take care of myself. But I appreciate the thought. By the way, weren't you supposed to be meeting Laura at Cafe Cafe?" Kelly asked.

"Her mom had a surprise appointment. Laura had to watch her little brother. She called me and said we'd have to reschedule," Josh stated sadly.

"Oh boy. However many hours with Kyle. That's gonna be tough, especially with her just getting out of the hospital," Kelly said sympathetically. She cringed mentally at the memory of her one shot baby-sitting attempt with Laura's 10 year old brother, Kyle. It hadn't been fun. The result of spending 99% of his waking hours playing video games was the kid mentally living in a virtual reality, and being under the impression that he was a Dragon Slayer, and so carried a broom as his "sword." She had spent the evening hiding under the table, twisting to avoid repeated stabs with the broom as Kyle tried to slay the "monster," who, in his video game wired mind, was his baby-sitter.

"I remember," Josh grinned. He had also suffered at the hands of the computerized child.

"Well, there's no reason we cant go surfing, is there?" Kelly decided after a moment, collecting her board. Josh rolled his eyes, but grabbed his board. He followed his sister out into the water.

"Whoo-ha!" Kelly squealed, shifting her body to balance on the wave.

"Hey, Kel! What does 'whoo-ha' mean?" Josh shouted.

"What does 'whoo-hoo' mean?" Kelly shot back.

"Point taken," Josh called back, struggling to regain his balance as his foot slipped on the slick board. Kelly laughed at his clumsiness until she slipped up herself, and fell in the water.

"Yiii!" she squealed, in surprise, as her head vanished beneath the waves.

"Kelly!" Josh shouted, diving off his board. He surfaced seconds later, tightly holding his twin sister, who was choking on water and laughing at the same.

"Geez, I was fine! I can take care of myself," the teenager cried indignantly once she had calmed down, wiping damp strands of hair from her face. Josh rolled his eyes and pushed Kelly's board at her.

"I'll take your word for it," he said calmly. Kelly snorted, and eased up onto her board. She balanced on her knees for a moment, then looked at the shore.

"Check it out, a dog!" she cried excitedly, pointing at the sand-coated shoreline. She leaned forward too far, predictingly slipped, and fell back into the water with a loud splash. Josh sighed, banged his head on his board, then ducked into the water and fished his twin out. She sputtered as her head broke the surface.

"Clumsy," Josh scolded, though a smile spread across his face. The girl sent him an innocent smile, and paddled to the shore. She set her board in the sand, and walked up to the animal, who seemed to be searching frantically for something.

"Hey there, pretty puppy," the teenager crooned, stopping several feet away from the dog. It whirled around at her voice, and regarded her with caution. Kelly held out her hand.

"Easy there, baby. I won't hurt you," she soothed gently. The dog appeared unsure of herself, then trotted a few steps closer. Kelly advanced with great caution, and the dog's pink tongue flicked out, gave the girl a quick lick, and retreated back into the animal's mouth.

"Hey, you're friendly. Pretty baby," she murmured relaxingly. She edged her hand forward to stroke the animal's ear. To her surprise, the dog moved forward quickly and pressed it's head against her hand. She chuckled, and rubbed the other ear.

"You like that?" she asked sweetly, getting an agreeable whimper from her new friend. Kelly knelt down, and the dog eagerly moved into her arms. Josh came up behind them, and tapped Kelly's shoulder.

"So, does it have a name?" he asked. His sister moved to feel for a collar, and found none.

"I guess not. Oh, well, we can think of one later," she replied, moving to pick up the dog. Her brother stopped her.

"Wait. A. Minute...we're not taking this thing back to the house," he informed her firmly.

"And why not? We'll put up found posters in case the owner shows, but until then, I wanna keep the dog," Kelly snapped, defiantly challenging her brother to deny her wishes, knowign he couldn't. He sighed in defeat, and she picked up the dog.

*****

They got home, and the dog scampered past Kelly and began to inspect the house. The girl caught it by the hind leg, and pushed the animal into the bathroom.

"You can give her a bath," she said absently to her brother. He shot her an annoyed look.

"Why me? She's your dog," he complained. Kelly gave her brother a smirky smile.

"Because you cant cook," was all she said, then entered the kitchen. Josh muttered something about taking a culinary class, and went into the bathroom. Only to find his sister's new pet had already knocked over several combs, brushes, and a bottle of eye drops.

"Okay, let's just get this over with," the boy sighed, and reached for the canine. She backed up against the door, flattening her ears back but making no warning noises.

Half an hour later, Kelly was in the process of making hamburgers. She'd just flipped the third burger off the frying pan, and the doorbell rang. She turned off the stove, and walked over. A very sheepish-looking Xam was on the other side.

"Forgot my key," he explained. His twin smiled sweetly, and hugged him.

"You're just in time. Josh is _trying_ to give the dog I found a bath. Maybe you could go give him a hand," she told the teenager. He shot her a curious look, then sighed and went to help his original. As she passed by the door, Kelly heard Josh still trying to coax the dog into trusting him enough to even get the tense animal near the water. After a second, Xam's voice joined his brother's. She smiled when she heard the water running, followed by some splashing. 

"Amazing. Sounds like they got her settled," she chuckled. That hope was dashed minutes later, by a series of panicked shouts, a few yelps, and finally, a thudding splash. Fearing the worst, Kelly dashed down to the room, and got the door open. A shocked Xam was standing in the middle of the room, tightly clutching a dog-shaped blob of foam, which was squirming wildly. Josh was sitting in the bathtub, completely soaked. The girl let out a sigh of relief.

"It was his fault," the male twins said at the same time, pointing at one another. The sister just rolled her eyes.

"I think you two have had enough fun for one day. Xam, give me the dog. There's burgers in the kitchen, I'll clean up here," she said authoritatively. Xam obediently handed off the creature, and turned to pull his twin from the water. Kelly waited until the boys had left, then set the dog down in the tub. She kept up a steady stream of soothing murmurs as she rinsed the soap from the soft coat. Now that it wasn't coated in dirt and grime, she could see the pretty black, brown, and white coat, and how pitifully thin the creature was. It had been hard to tell, the canine was so fluffy, but now it was clear. The tail hung limply, soaked through. The blonde imagined it was a thick plume when it was dry.

"Boys have no idea how to do anything but eat and fight," she chuckled softly, pouring the last cup of water over the animal's head. She rubbed gently to make sure all the suds were out, then grabbed a towel, using it to shield herself while her new pet shook herself dry. 

"Well, we've got think of a name for you, baby," Kelly said, briskly rubbing the coat free of remaining water. The dog eagerly jumped about, playfully licking the girl's face.

"Hey, I know! How about...Going Turbo?" she asked laughingly. The dog gave her a pleading look She chuckled a little, and patted it's head.

"I'm close. What about...Turbo?" she suggested, and was bowled over by an enthusiastic slurp. Laughing, she got the dog a little drier, and tossed the towel into the clothes basket. She looked down at her front. The black shirt she was wearing was soaked though. 

"You go make friends with Xam and Josh. I'll get cleaned up," she told her new pet, opening the door. While Turbo made a noisy racket to attract the twins' attention, Kelly slipped into her room unnoticed. Outside, she could hear some of the children in the neighborhood laughing joyfully. She unbuttoned the black shirt and let it fall to the floor, leaving her in a tight white tank top. Curiosity getting the better of her, she rapidly pulled on a denim T-shirt, and looked out the open window. A baseball zoomed through the window, barely missing her left ear. A collection of frantic apologies sounded.

"It's okay. Here," she called, throwing the ball back out the window. A young boy caught it, and ran back to his cohorts.

"Kelly, come get the mutt!" she heard one of the boys yell. An indignant bark sounded. She dashed out to the living room, and found Xam in a standoff around the couch with Turbo. 

"Turbo!" she called happily, holding out her arms. The dog whined eagerly, bounced over the couch, and into the girl's embrace. Josh sighed and shook his head. Xam imitated his twin.

*****

Turbo spent a week at the house, getting used to living with people again. Not like she was skittish or anything. She and Kelly were instant friends, but Turbo and the boys...that was just a combination that was never meant to be. She and Josh were a borderline thing, but Turbo and Xam, just not possible. And the animal had yet to meet any of the team's partners. Kelly was confident that Berto would immediately like the dog, but Rachel didn't seem like the animal lover type, especially not a canine version of one of the Steel trio.

"Tee, I've got a special surprise for you, honey! You get to meet Berto and Rachel, yes you do!" the now brunette teenager sang, clipping on the dog's leash. Surprisingly, it hadn't taken the dog very long to figure out that Maxy and Kelly were the same, as with Josh and Max. Xam appeared in his sister's doorway.

"Kel, you sure you want to do this?" he asked hesitantly. Turbo barked indignantly at him.

"Xam, relax. The worst she'd do is set off an alarm," Maxy assured calmly, brushing by him.

"That's what I'm afraid of," Xam groaned, following them. Turbo danced around Maxy's ankles, then jumped on Xam. With a loud yell of disgust, the teenage boy shoved her off, and sighed. With an insulted yap, Turbo play bit his boot, leaving a set of slight depressions.

"Well, if your boots vanish suddenly, we can assume Turbo has developed a taste for N-tek plastic," Max quipped from the hallway. The dog dove for his ankles next, missed, and bit into the couch side.

"Hey, keep the teeth in the mouth," Xam scolded, swatting at the dog's rear end. She yelped and skittered behind Max, seeking sympathy.

"You boys done bonding with her? Cause we need to get going," Maxy prompted brightly. Both boys quickly insisted that they weren't bonding with Turbo, but followed their sister out the door.

*****

Berto didn't even have a chance to try and shield himself from the dog. She snuck in, and tackled him into the console before he knew it. By the time Max and the others arrived, Turbo had staked her claim in the control room...Berto's main console.

"Get. Off. Of. That. Now," Maxy heard Berto order. Then Turbo whined pitifully, and changed to a growl of "you cant make me."

"Wonderful to see you getting along with her," Maxy greeted Berto, putting an arm around his shoulders. He was having a glaring contest with Turbo, who was sprawled out lengthwise on the buttons. She rolled over, and her elbow hit the bio-link feedback. All three Steel triplets yelped and grabbed his heads. Berto rushed to shut it off.

"I think she had that one planned," Xam grumbled, rubbing his ear. Maxy chuckled, and rubbed her pet behind the ears.

"Don't be silly, biggie bro. Turbo's just a nice doggie, she did it on accident," she admonished her brother's clone, though by now he really felt more like a brother. Right then, Rachel arrived.

"Hmm, who's this?" she asked in a more "chipper" tone than usual, reaching out to pat Turbo.

"That would be the mutt Kel found at the beach," Xam muttered under his breath. Turbo laid her ears back at him, then tackled Rachel, giving her a welcoming slurp upside the face.

"Huh. Never pegged you as an animal lover, Rachel," Max observed as Turbo let his partner up. She patted the dog on the head.

"Until she does something she isn't supposed to, I'll tolerate her," the young woman promised. Turbo gave her a "I'd _never do _anything bad!" look, then hid behind Maxy.

Turbo had barely been at N-tek for three hours before her first real accident, if you want to call it that. It started as innocently as Maxy taking her to meet Dr. Yevshenko. The doctor wasn't very thrilled with the animal, concerned that she would "contaminate the area."

"Just try to keep her away from this area. The medical lab is supposed to be a clean room, and a dog isn't the cleanest thing on earth," Yevshenko was warning Maxy. Turbo found her way into the back, where a young agent who had been injured on a mission was recovering.

"Okay, we'll stay away from here then, won't be Turbo? Tee, where'd ya go?" Maxy said, looking around. She turned a little pale when she saw the recovery room door partially open. Yevshenko sighed and went in the back.

"Hey, get off that bed!" the doctor was heard seconds later. A confused and panicked yelp emitted from the back, and was quick followed by a loud crash. With a useless prayer that nothing important had been broken, Maxy shot into the back. Turbo was cowering under one of the beds, Yevshenko was seeing red, the patient looked highly amused, and an unused monitor was laying on the floor, trashed.

"Get that animal out of here before she destroys something else!" Yevshenko snapped at the young woman. Maxy meekly squeaked an apology, and dragged her pet out from under the bed.

"Great show," the young male patient approved. Maxy shot him a quick smile, then all but ran out of the room with Turbo on her heels. The teenager leaned against the wall outside the medical area. Turbo mimicked her, resting her head against the girl's knee.

"Maybe we shoulder leave her alone for a few days, or weeks, or months," Maxy suggested finally. Turbo nodded in approval, and then Xam came down the hall.

"Is it just me, or is there an air of guilty tension surrounding you two?" he asked revealingly, giving his sister a hard look. Maxy scuffed the floor with her boot. Turbo looked down and pawed at the metal plating.

"It was nothing, really. We've got a hundred monitors, don't we?" Maxy blurted in her sweetest voice. Xam sighed, and crossed his arms, waiting for the rest.

"What did you do this time?" he pressed when she failed to answer.

"Wasn't me! Turbo knocked it over!" the female Steel was quick to point out. Turbo growled at her mistress and got onto her hind legs to give her a small push.

"Knocked what over? Or do I want to know?" Xam questioned calmly, leaning against the wall beside them. Maxy and Turbo exchanged looks, then sighed simultaneously.

"Turbo went into the recovery room, and tipped over a monitor. It wasn't on, I swear! And Yevshenko wasn't too mad..." the girl trailed off.

"Which means that she was steaming mad and that you should try to hide from her for the next week or so," Max finished, appearing out of nowhere. Maxy and Turbo nodded sullenly. Max smiled, and shrugged.

"Don't worry about it. I've done that more times than you have," he assured. Maxy shot him a "thank you so much, that didn't make me feel any better" look, and Turbo whined.

*****

Over the following week, Turbo managed to make herself completely and utterly annoying to Berto, Rachel was making a point of avoiding the dog after Turbo had knocked her to the ground not once, but four times.

"Tell me again, why does she have to stay in here when you're out on missions?" Berto complained, glaring at Turbo, who was stretched innocently across his console. His partner laughed and put her arm around his shoulders.

"Aw, come on, Berto. You know you love her," she chided playfully, scratching Turbo behind the ears. The animal whined in contentment, and drooled all over a fortunately unneeded printout. Berto looked sick, while Maxy chuckled.

"Yeah, like a mouse loves a snake," Xam quipped from the doorway. Both teenagers turned to look at him. Turbo hopped off the console, rushed the teen, and tackled him to the floor, eagerly slobbering all over his face. He freaked, to put it mildly.

"Augh! Get it off! Get it off!" he shouted desperately, just as Turbo decided his face was clean enough, and left him alone. She trotted up to Maxy, who smiled and crooned something at her.

"It tried to kill me!" the scarred agent accused, getting up. Turbo barked sharply, and bounded out the door.

"Berto, that was why I wanted her to stay in here. Well, time to see how fast that thing can go. Going turbo!" she said in one breath, then bolted out the door in a green glow. Both Berto and Xam got up to look out the door, hearing a crash. A cart that had been in the hall was laying on it's side. Amazingly, nothing was on it, so no damage.

"Ever notice that she never hits a cart with stuff on it?" Xam asked casually. Berto nodded, and went to pick up the cart.

"Turbo, get back here!" Maxy shouted, chasing her pet into a sparring room. Rachel and Max looked up as they came tearing in. Turbo streaked around the room, until a well-aimed flying tackle from Maxy slammed both of them into a rolled up mat.

"Nice entrance," Max said teasingly, clapping slowly. Maxy powered down and stood, holding Turbo. The animal squirmed wildly, looking for a way of escape. She tried to enlist Rachel's assistance, giving the blonde agent a pleading look and adding a sad whimper to it.

"You know me," Maxy replied with a smile, and marched out the door, the fidgety animal voicing complaint with loud squeals of resentment. Max and Rachel waited a moment to see if they'd come back, then started their sparring again.

Maxy entered the TSO room, scolding Turbo. Both Berto and Xam listened with interest as she spoke to the animal.

"Turbo, you know better than to run off like that around here. What if you get into more trouble, like with Dr. Yevshenko?" she chided. The animal stiffened and shook herself, hearing the doctor's name. The three teenagers chuckled. Xam patted his sister on the shoulder.

"I think maybe Yevshenko has become Turbo's Smiley," he observed. Maxy shook her head.

"She hasn't even met Smiley yet. She'll have to meet him first," the girl chuckled. Her dog decided to run around the room as fast as she possibly could.

"Wow, she's just like her owner. When she cant think of anything else to do, she runs in circles," Xam joked. Maxy and Max both clipped him in the head. Whining something about being nice, he covered his head from the blows. Turbo screeched to a stop right in front of him, and stuck her nose under his arms towards his face.

"You wouldn't dare..." he challenged slowly. A disgusted yelp emitted from the teenager, and he threw his head back, wiping doggie slobber off his cheek.

"She would dare, gladly," Maxy quipped, giggling into her hand. Turbo jumped to hide behind her mistress, and peered worriedly out at Xam.

The next few days passed strangely similar to the first. Turbo got into more trouble with several people, and made a couple new enemies. However, her sweet face and cheery disposition made many others instantly smile, offering the dog a small collection of "safe people" to go to when she got on the bad side of one of the ones who didn't like her. Maxy was obviously her first choice, but Jake was next, and Berto if she was absolutely desperate. On the other end, she had to avoid a certain three people at all costs. Mairot, Yevshenko, and Jefferson. None of them warmed to her especially well. Xam acted as if he liked her the least, but she loved him.

"Come on, Xam, you know you love her," Maxy teased often, grabbing Turbo's head, and tilting the animal's head to look up right into Xam's eyes. He'd fold his arms across his chest, and look away.

"I do not!" was the constant reply. This, of course, induced even more teasing, as Turbo would then jump on him, and slurp his face.

*****

It had been almost three weeks since that fateful day when the female Steel triplet had found the lovable mutt at the beach, and Turbo had become a familiar face around N-tek.

"I think we should make Turbo a member of Team Steel. Like, so she can go out on missions, with us," Maxy announced, at a point when both of her brothers, along with her boyfriend, were in the room. The three boys exchanged "oh, just great" looks. Turbo whined hopefully, and gave them her best doggie smile, tongue hanging out of her mouth.

"Kelly, how do we put it in terms you can understand...?" Xam began, then made a couple of monkey noises, pointing at Turbo. Maxy and Turbo rolled their eyes.

"What the monkey was trying to say is 'N-O.' Kel, the last thing we need is having to remember a leash in addition to everything else we usually carry," Max interjected, shoving Xam off the console he'd been sitting on. He yelped in surprise as he hit the floor.

"Josh, that wasn't very nice," Maxy scolded. Turbo got bored, and slipped out of the room without anyone noticing. She yawned, shook herself, and trotted down the hall. She saw Dr. Yevshenko, and ducked behind a wheeled cart until the female doctor passed. The cowering animal spotted the open door the woman had come through. Thinking that she wouldn't be back for a while, the canine ducked into the room. Almost instantly, the doors shut, and a laser grid appeared, two inches above the dog's head. Turbo raised her nose, and sniffed the energy beams, nose quivering slightly. She shook her head, and trotted towards a table. Miraculously, she stood up right between two lasers, easily missing each one by several inches. There was a rack with four vials on the table. The mixed-breed dog's nose quivered, and she accidentally shoved the rack over. Greenish fluid slipped over the table. Bored and thirsty, the animal was quick to lap up the liquid. Almost instantly, she yelp, and threw herself back, tripping several of the lasers. Alarms went off, scaring the poor, already in pain animal further. In a wild panic, Turbo lunged for the door, just as it opened, thanks to Dr. Yevshenko. Turbo was a blur as she darted past the doctor, and ran down the hallways, yelping her head off.

"What is the matter with that animal?" Yevshenko muttered under her breath, then sighed, seeing the spilled tubes.

Maxy glanced up from the clipboard of medical printouts of her brother's brain pulses, hearing the loud, pained cries of what sounded like her pet. In a flash, the papers were being crushed under the plywood board on the floor as the teenager bolted from the room. 

"Turbo?!" she called, pausing outside the door. Loud barks answered her, and she took off, crashing into Xam as she blindly rounded a corner. Both were thrown back to land on their butts. Xam shot his twin an irritated look, and got up, haughtily brushing himself off, smiling to show he wasn't nearly as mad as he was acting. She shook her head. He didn't need to. She knew him well enough. He offered his hand to her.

"I knew there was a sale at the mall, lil' sis,' but I didn't know you wanted to get there so bad," he teased, pulling her ponytail. Maxy rolled her eyes at his joking.

"No, I heard Turbo," she explained, dashing past him. He watched her go, a little confused.

"She probably just got on Yevshenko's bad side again," he mumbled to himself, heading for the training room beyond the TSO room.

"Turbo, stay in one place, will ya?!" Maxy shouted, pausing for breath. N-tek was huge, and with her hearing, that mutt could be anywhere. She listened carefully, then bolted down the hall on her left, her boots clicking down the empty path. Turbo's cries were getting louder, she must be getting closer. Now, she could hear the clack of nails.

"Whoa! Hey, Steel, turn off the turbo!" a black-haired male agent yelled at her, after the half-machine teenager blew past him, nearly knocking the folder out of his hands. Maxy ignored him, and snapped down another turn. After nearly running over another agent, she came to another fork. Soft whimpering came from the center path. The girl tore off again, getting the strangest feeling that she was going deeper underground. Suddenly, the click of nails became very clear. She spotted a furry rump just ahead of her. It was her dog, Turbo. She was about to call for the animal to heel, when Turbo abruptly collapsed on her side, sliding a few feet across the floor, and laying motionless.

"Turbo!" Maxy screamed, dropping to her knees near her pet. She slid, twisted her body, and ended up kneeling on her pet's right side. Turbo was breathing heavily, in small, quivering gasps, the pink tongue lolling from her mouth. Her eyes were tightly closed, as if in pain. The canine's entire body shook with pain, or something the girl couldn't figure out in her state.

"Tee...baby, what happened?!" Maxy gasped, shaking her pet's shoulder. Turbo responded with a huge sigh, and went limp. Maxy panicked, plain and simple. She had no idea what had happened to her pet. The only thing she could see was that the dog was still breathing, if not a little shallowly. Also, her heart was beating as well. The brunette picked up her dog, and raced off, back tracking her route up to the medical room. Fortunately, Berto was the only one there.

"Maxy, what's wrong?" Berto questioned, looking up. The girl thrust the dog out.

"Something's wrong with Turbo!" she exclaimed in a panicky tone. Berto looked from girl to canine, several times.

"Then...shouldn't you take her to a vet?" he asked hesitantly. Maxy shook her head.

"A couple minutes ago...she was acting...like I did...after I was infused with the Max-probes..." the teenager stuttered, looking hopefully at the Spanish teenager. He sighed, and took Turbo's body from his girlfriend. Laying the dog on an examination table, he hooked several monitors up to the animal.

"You're right. Turbo's been infused. Well, there's only one chance," he said finally, looking back at his partner. She nodded, biting her lip, and laid a hand on Turbo's right paw.

Minutes later, both of the teenagers were standing in the viewing room, looking down into the chamber. Turbo was curled in the chair, the discs started to spin, the energy collecting in them. The beam fired down, striking the dog head-on. Maxy clapped her hands together.

"Think she'll be okay?" she asked softly, worriedly. Berto shook his head, eyes glued to the monitor in front of him. The dog's vitals were getting stronger.

"We won't know until she wakes up," he said in reply. The greenish glow in the chamber stopped. Turbo was still unconscious. Maxy was already in the chamber, lifting her pet from the chair. She knelt on the floor near the chair, cuddling her dog close, hands tightly gripping the fur on Turbo's shoulders. The canine's head raised weakly, and delivered a passing lick to the girl's cheek. Berto watched them affectionately through the window for a moment, then went down to get both of them. It was time to find out how well the nano-tech max worked on animals. He paused near his girlfriend, kneeling down on one knee near her. Tears of gratitude were brimming in her eyes as she cradled her dog close. She started when he wiped the tears from her right eye, the one closest to him, then turned to look at him. She let go of Turbo, who stood firmly on her own two feet, and launched herself at Berto, wrapping her arms tightly around his shoulders. He embraced her in return. Turbo looked at them, and sighed.

"Thank you," Maxy whispered finally. Berto detached her arms, and pulled her to her feet.

"You're welcome. Come on, I suppose we have to see about getting Turbo some hardware," he replied, taking her hand. She nodded, then wrapped her arms around him again, kissed him deeply on the lips, and then bounced off, Turbo close behind. Berto followed them as if in a trance. Obviously, he wasn't expecting the reaction.

*****

While the others weren't especially thrilled with Turbo's upgrade, Xam and Max in particular, they had to agree with Maxy; the mutt could now be used as a great distraction. Because Turbo would constantly chew on a wrist band, not to mention she really lacked the motor skills to hit buttons on the thing, Turbo's bio-link was attached around her neck. Then, for one step up, the functions could only be voice-activated by a member of Team Steel. She was just like a member of the team. Turbo now came to meetings, often could go on missions, if a decoy was possibly needed. Then Turbo's favorite part, and Berto's least. On missions where she wasn't needed, Turbo had to stay in the control room.

"What's with her and shedding all over my console?" Berto was often heard complaining. Turbo was definitely the most thrilled about her new features. Now she could outrun Xam even easier than ever!

  


_ Well, that's Turbo for you. The newest member of the team, and by far the fastest. Up next in line is "Demons." Catch ya there!_

-Maxy Steel


	5. Demons

_General disclaimer: The TV show Max Steel is not mine, though I really wish it was. It belongs to a number of companies whose names escape my memory at the moment, but my name wasn't on that list, if I recall. Kelly McGrath/Maxy Steel, Xam Steel are my characters, and Turbo is the creation of me and my friend, and I will set my corgi-beagle on you if you use their names or their characters without my permission. Enough of that, on with the story!_


	6. Three Of A Kind

_General disclaimer: The TV show Max Steel is not mine, though I really wish it was. It belongs to a number of companies whose names escape my memory at the moment, but my name wasn't on that list, if I recall. Kelly McGrath/Maxy Steel, Xam Steel, and DeRe Skios are my characters, and Turbo is the creation of me and my friend, and I will set my corgi-beagle on you if you use their names or their characters without my permission. Enough of that, on with the story!_

  


**THREE OF A KIND**

**BY:**

**Maxy Steel**

  
  


**Timeline: Two months after "Demons."**

Xam snuck inside the house, trying to be as quiet as possible. The door clicked shut, and the living room lights all flashed on. He blinked like a raccoon caught in a spotlight. Something hugged him, and something else barked.

"You were out late. Long date?" Kelly asked, arms still around his neck.

"Yeah, she's really nice. Her name's DeRe," Xam replied, a little dreamily, partly because he was still dazed from going from almost absolute darkness to bright light. Josh chuckled softly.

"Really? We've only heard about her, what is it Kelly? Fifteen times? Or just fourteen?" he quipped. Kelly shot him a warning glance, and turned back to Xam.

"So, it's been almost three months since you met this one. Since you two are still together, my question is, when do we get to meet her?" she asked, releasing her brother. The teenage clone thought for a minute.

"Well, we're going to the movie matinee tomorrow night. You two could come," he suggested.

"I'll try to talk Berto into coming," Kelly said decisively. Josh looked in deep debate.

"I could ask Laura," he said finally. Kelly snickered behind her hand.

"Or Max could take Rachel," she teased playfully. Josh raised an eyebrow at her.

"Yeah, but, can you see her going to that?" Josh joked. Kelly frowned thoughtfully, running through possible arguments.

"She went to the carnival," the female triplet argued after a moment. Her brothers laughed at the memory.

"Oh, yeah. How could I forget that?" the blond male chuckled. Kelly glanced at the clock again. She swatted both boys across the shoulders. Turbo barked again.

"Don't want to interrupt, but it's one in the morning. We really should get to sleep. Josh's got classes, then Berto and I have to work on _Falcon_ after that last mission. Xam, how you managed to destroy the fuel line like that is completely beyond me, but then, I don't know about what you're doing," the only human girl in the room reminded them.

"Veg," Xam replied simply. His original chuckled, and looked envious.

"Yes mother," Josh chimed in, very sarcastically. Kelly rolled her eyes, and shoved both of them towards the hall, Turbo assisting by nipping playfully at all three teenager's ankles. Xam and Josh both made weak attempts at getting her to leave them alone.

"Even so," the female triplet muttered, entering her room. From the other two rooms, the boys called their good-nights.

*****

Xam woke up last, not too long after Josh and Kelly had left, about eight, according to the clock by his bed. Instead of getting up, however, he chose to grab a sketchpad and draw a picture of him and his siblings, both of them in Max Mode. After looking at the paper for a moment, he grinned, and added in their civilian forms, Turbo, Berto, and Rachel. After carefully signing, then removing the picture and setting it aside, he worked on one of himself and DeRe, Maxy and Berto, and Max and Rachel. Almost an hour later, he glanced at his watch. His second drawing was not even halfway done, but was almost noon. He collected the loose papers sticking out of the sides of the book, all of the drawings he'd done, jammed the whole thing back into the box he kept it in, shoved it under his bed into the gap he'd made for it, then wandered out to the kitchen. A note was resting on the counter, in Kelly's neat script.

"Dear Xam, blah blah, if you're not busy, then I'm sure Berto and I could use the help," the teenager read boredly, then yawned. He rubbed a hand through his messy, dark hair. 

"Morning, biggie bro! So, you coming down, or what?" Kelly's cheerful voice rang through his brain. The boy in question winced lightly.

"You're gonna break my ear drums," he replied. Kelly apologized in a much lower key tone. His tense muscles relaxed instantly.

"Well, are you going to come?" she asked hopefully. Xam looked down at his shirtless torso and black sweatpants.

"As soon as I change," he promised, then headed for his room. He pulled on his uniform, and went to get his motorcycle from the garage. In the afternoon silence of children at school and parents at work, the cycle's engine seemed very loud and obnoxious. He took off, roaring down the street.

The motorcycle snarled to a stop outside of N-tek. Xam got off and looked around. Vaguely, he remembered Kelly saying something about working on Falcon, and headed for the jet hanger.

"Biggie bro!" a female voice cried as he entered the hanger. Xam braced himself for a flying-tackle hug, and was surprised when it didn't come. He looked around. Turbo was curled up in a corner, and Kelly was beside him, or at least he thought it was Kelly. It could have easily been a Kelly-shaped blob of oil. Black smeared through her hair, her face was streaked, and the dark blue T-shirt, obviously an old one of Josh's, was gritty. She grinned and wiped her hands on the beaten blue denim shorts she was wearing. She frowned at his clothing choice.

"You're planning to work on the jet in your uniform?" she asked incredulously.

"You didn't say..." Xam protested weakly.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure we've got an extra shirt," the girl mused.

"Uh...sure," Xam stuttered, unable to think of anything else. For him, it was too early.

"While I'm getting that shirt, I'll see if Josh left any of his sweatpants over here," she told him, running off. Berto looked up, having missed the exchange.

"Um, Xam, could you give me a hand here?" he requested. Xam shrugged, dropped the T-shirt, and climbed up on the wingtip. Berto was struggling with a long hose.

"What do I do?" Xam asked, kneeling on the metal wing.

"Hold this..." Berto replied, handing him the hose. Xam looked down the tube opening.

"What's this for?" he asked curiously.

"Oil," the younger teenager replied. Xam hurriedly held the hose away from his face. Berto's upper body disappeared into the space. Xam leaned back and looked around. Turbo had sat up, and looked torn between trying to follow Kelly, or waiting for her to return. After a moment, the dog sighed and laid back down. 

"Uh-oh," Berto's voice echoed through the space, and he jumped back. Xam however, didn't get the point, and was hit head on by a stray jet of black grease. He slipped on a puddle that was under his feet, and fell, landing on his feet and quickly slipping on the oil that had landed down there, then fell on his back. He looked up. The hose was hanging limply where he had dropped it, and Berto was looking over the edge with an expression mixed of mild fear and apology.

"Um...oops," he offered weakly. Xam glared at him, wiping black grease off his cheek. From the entrance to the hanger, slow, sarcastic clapping sounded. 

"Great warm-up. Where can I buy tickets?" Kelly asked sweetly, entering the room. She held a black T-shirt with a bleached shoulder, and a grayish bundle.

"Uh...the box office down the street," Xam replied lamely. She chuckled softly, and wrinkled her nose.

"Phew! That oil stinks! Go use the shower," she ordered, pointing at a room to the side. Xam looked down at his uniform, most of which was slick black, along with his hands and definitely face. Kelly followed him to the room, stuck the clothes in, and went back to help Berto.

"Honestly, between you boys, I'm surprised I have any time to get into trouble myself," she joked, grabbing a towel and wiping at the grease on the floor. Turbo whined her agreement.

"I don't get in that much, and when you get into trouble, you don't fool around," Berto replied defensively. The blonde nodded, and looked at the damage that the two boys had done in the few minutes she'd been gone.

"Hmm, nothing too bad. We'll have it fixed up in no time," she murmured to herself. Turbo took it into her head to use the time to unleash a little energy, and took off, running in fast rings around the hanger. Kelly raised an eyebrow, and ignored her pet.

"What'd you give her?" Berto questioned, referring to the blur that was probably Turbo.

"Jet fuel, as usual. Come on, help me with this," Kelly replied. Berto knelt down beside her, and grabbed some tools. 

They worked in silence, save the rapid click of Turbo's nails. Kelly wiped her brow, and declared the oil line fixed. Turbo snuck up on Berto, tackled him playfully, and snatched the wrench in his fist.

"Hey, give that back!" he shouted, taking off after his girlfriend's dog. Kelly giggled and cheered her man on. Turbo galloped by the jet, and threw the tool to the side. Berto picked it up, and came back to the jet.

"I think she enjoyed that much more than you," Kelly observed from her position on Falcon's glass cover.

"I think you're right," Berto replied. Turbo screeched to a stop beside him, and looked up, begging forgiveness. He frowned at the animal, which then whimpered and laid down. Kelly giggled again, making a sympathetic noise on the end.

"Oh, come on, Berto. You're making her sad!" she scolded. Berto rolled his eyes and patted Turbo, who instantly jumped up and licked his face.

"Just don't take the tools," he added sternly, dropping the wrench in the toolbox. Kelly grinned, and slid off her perch. She tapped her partner on the shoulder. She blushed slightly when he turned back around, giving her a questioning look.

"Uh...are you busy tonight?" she asked after a moment. The receiver of her question frowned thoughtfully for a moment.

"No...I don't think so. Why?" he replied, a little cautiously.

"Well, Xam and DeRe were goin' to the matinee tonight, and Xam asked Josh and I if we wanted to come, and I wanted to know if you wanted to come," the older teen explained.

"Sure. But, who are you going as?" he shrugged. The blonde snorted as if he'd just asked what color was the blue sky.

"As Maxy, of course. I'll be Xam's twin," she giggled. Berto raised an eyebrow, and hauled the toolbox over to it's place.

"This just keep's getting more and more confusing," he sighed upon his return. Kelly laughed, and scrambled back onto the jet wing to grab her tools.

"What? Okay, quick recon. Josh and Kelly are twins. Max, Xam, and Maxy are triplets. The Max crew are the Josh crew's cousins, and vice versa," she called from the back. 

"That's really confusing," Berto replied. From the tool area, there was laughter.

"So it might be easier to just tell them, but that would create a ton of extra problems, most involving a certain _Dread_-full person we all know," she reminded him. Just as she was returning from putting away her equipment, Xam came out of the room, wearing Josh's clothes, and holding a black-gray uniform.

"You're done?" he asked, slightly shocked. Kelly nodded, and whistled for Turbo. The animal whipped to her side, and she gave Berto a quick hug and a peck on the cheek.

"We'll be by around...uh, biggie bro? When's the movie start?" she called to her brother's clone. Xam thought for a minute.

"Six, I think," he replied. Kelly nodded, and turned back to Berto.

"Quarter to, then. Bye!" she grinned, and ran after Xam and Turbo.

On the car ride home, while trying to ignore Turbo's incessant attempts at driving for him, Xam worked out the evening's plans with Kelly.

"So, Josh is bringing Laura, I talked to him earlier during his break, you've got Berto, and what do we do with the mutt?" he asked. Turbo snorted, and rammed the horn with her muzzle, then dove for the back seat. Xam and Kelly tensed at the loud noise, then the latter scolded Turbo.

"She can stay at home, either in the pen, or in my room," the blonde replied, rubbing at a smear of grease on her cheek. Xam was still in sweatpants and T-shirt, while Kelly had ended up changing into her muscle shirt and a pair of red sweatpants she's had in her room. She reached up and fiddled with her ponytail.

*****

Back at home, the suburb house, both teenagers changed, then planned out how to spend the two hours until Josh finished school.

"We could go to the mall," Kelly suggested, fiddling with a loose string on her cut-off black denim shorts. Xam raised an eyebrow.

"Mall? With a girl? We'd be there for days," he replied. Kelly stood up and put her fists on her hips.

"True, but I'm a_ tomboy_, so it won't even take an hour," she reminded him.

"Oh, yeah. How could I forget?" Xam chuckled, getting up. Kelly shepherded Turbo into her room, and patted her head.

"Good girl. You be good while I'm gone, 'kay?" she crooned, stroking the soft fur behind her pet's ears. Turbo snuffled her hand in response, then hopped on the bed. The owner grinned and left the room.

"Ready?" Xam asked as she entered the living room.

"You know it!" his sister replied, bouncing for the door.

At the mall, then most feminine thing Kelly did was try on some skirts and blouses. Even then, it only took ten minutes, mostly cause of the sales woman.

"Xam, what do you think of this one?" she asked, stepping out the dressing room. Xam frowned critically, then nodded.

"It looks good," he approved. The blonde looked down at the knee-length navy skirt, white long-sleeve with straight sleeves, and red lace-up vest. A pretty blond sales woman came up, and eyed Kelly's clothing choice. The name "Kiki" was on her tag.

"We have that vest in black or navy, it would look more matched," she suggested.

"Hmm, I kind of like this one better," Kelly replied. The woman vanished, and returned with both colors.

"Here, try them on, and we can ask your boyfriend," she pressed. Kelly grinned, and took them, then started unlacing the red one.

"Well, I guess we could ask through the vid link," she shrugged. 

"You mean, this guy isn't your boyfriend?" Kiki asked, looking shocked and interested.

"He's my cousin," Kelly shrugged, tying the navy vest. She turned to Xam for his approval. He gave her a thumbs up.

"That one looks better," he added. Kiki studied Kelly's face for a minute.

"You look familiar. What's your name?" she asked.

"Kelly McGrath," was the reply. Kiki snapped her fingers.

"Now I remember! Josh McGrath, he's your brother, right?" she asked excitedly.

"Yeah," Kelly affirmed.

"I used to watch the D.O.X. when he was in it. I feel sorry for you!" she gushed. Kelly glanced back at Xam, who was holding back from laughing.

"Why would you feel sorry for me?" Kelly asked.

"Cause you can't date your brother!" Kiki exclaimed.

"Oh that. Big deal," Kelly shrugged, earning a shocked look from Kiki.

"Girl, you are amazing. Josh is _such_ a hottie! And that other guy, who is he...from the last D.O.X., um...oh, yeah! Max Steel, he's is almost as cute!" Kiki giggled. Xam let a few small chuckles escape his mouth.

"That's what his girlfriend says," he informed the eager saleslady. Kiki looked downcast, and snapped her fingers.

"He's got a girlfriend? Aw, rats," she muttered. Kelly went back into the dressing room to get back into her clothes. Outside, she could hear Kiki talking to Xam.

"So, Xam, what about you? Are you single?" Kiki asked hopefully.

"I've got a girlfriend," the teenager replied.

"Really? Geez, why can't I ever meet a cute guy who's single?" the woman complained.

Kelly chuckled at the pouty tone in Kiki's voice, and stepped out, holding the navy vest and skirt, along with the white blouse.

"Well, Xam and I really need to get going," she prompted. Kiki nodded defeatedly, and rang up the purchase. Kelly thanked her, promised to let her know if Josh or Xam ever became single, and the two left.

"Hey, Kel. I need your opinion," Xam said as they walked.

"I'm always here," she grinned.

"Well, what kind of gift should I get for DeRe? Her birthday's comin' up," he asked. Kelly clapped in approval. Her twin shot her a raised eyebrow look.

"Good, you've got one of the most important things down," she grinned.

"Huh?" Xam asked cluelessly. Kelly rolled her eyes.

"There's an unofficial list of things a guy has to remember, if he wants to keep the girl he's got. First and foremost is remembering special events, like birthdays. But anyway, if I'm gonna help, I need to know her personality. Quiet, artsy, or loud and athletic?" she explained. Xam thought for a minute.

"She's a lot like you. Er, with red hair and green eyes," he shrugged. Kelly frowned thoughtfully.

"Like with you and Josh?" she asked, getting a nod of agreement.

"Exactly. She can't sit still for longer than a few minutes, and she's always cracking jokes. It's like being with you," he grinned. Kelly raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not surprised. After all, I'm the first girl you ever met. But back to the present. Well, you could always get her a necklace," she suggested, leading him towards the jewelry store.

Ten minutes later, they exited with a pretty, and yet, not gaudy, necklace. The pendant was DeRe's first initial in thin metal with a heart around it.

"It's cute. And no sharp edges, so she could wear it anytime," Kelly grinned, hand automatically moving to her own necklace. Xam glanced at his watch.

"Josh's gonna be home soon," he prompted.

"Then we should get home too," Kelly agreed, leading Xam towards the exit.

They beat Josh home by only a few minutes. Kelly had just put Turbo out when he walked in. 

"Josh!" the blonde female exclaimed, hugging him. Xam appeared in the hallway.

"Hey," he greeted. Turbo, sensing the arrival, threw herself at the door, wanting in.

"Is it just me, or is it really noisy all of a sudden?" Josh asked, detaching Kelly and sitting her on the couch.

"Just you," Xam replied over the volley of barking Turbo had erupted into. Kelly got up and let the animal in, which immediately tackled Josh in greeting.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm glad to see you too," he grunted, pushing her off. Kelly grabbed her pet's tail, spun it around a few times, then tossed a knotted rope down the hall. A very dizzy Turbo stumbled drunkenly after it.

"Now that that's settled, we've got an hour or so before it's time to leave," she announced. Both boys wanted to play video games, and the only female wanted to spend the time outside.

"How about you go outside, we play _Judo Enforcer 3000_?" Xam suggested. Kelly nodded, called to Turbo, and was out the door in seconds.

"I get to be the sumo-guy," Josh said quickly.

"You got to be him last time. You can be the old guy," Xam replied.

Kelly took a running jump, grabbed the bar, swung around several times, dismounted, and flipped once before landing, her ponytail flying out behind her.

"Boys have no appreciation for the finer sports, like gymnastics," she muttered, looking at the equipment she'd set up. Turbo, for her part, was using the lower bar as a hurdle, bounding back and forth over it like a frog. Kelly ran through a series of complicated techniques, then paused for breath.

Xam and Josh finished their fourth game with Xam as the victor. However, the win-lose tally was the same for each.

"Might as well see what Kel's up to," Josh shrugged. They raced each other upstairs, and out the door. Just in time to see the tail end of an amazingly difficult routine. Kelly blinked when she heard clapping, and turned to see her brothers. She giggled, and bowed dramatically.

"That looks hard," Xam commented.

"It is. That one took me two years to get right," Kelly replied, stretching. She back flipped, rebounded off a low bar, and caught the tallest beam.

"Interesting clothing choice," Josh noted. Kelly looked down at her red leotard.

"If they do, they'd just rip. Come on, let's see one of you two do that. Gymnastics is easy. Think of it as mid-air karate," she teased, doing a spiral flip off the bar.

Half an hour later, the most the two teenage boys had accomplished were numerous bruises, while Kelly was still cheering them on. Xam found an escape route in the form of time. They had twenty minutes to get ready before leaving. Kelly vaulted over both her brothers, and she and Turbo vanished inside before a word was spoken. They headed for Kelly's room, and Turbo dove under the bed in search of dust bunnies.

"Honestly, Tee, you'd think those two could get a simple flip right," she sighed while transforming and grabbing the clothes she'd purchased. Turbo crawled out from under the bed, having decided the room was "bunny-free," and trotted over to the vanity. Maxy finished tying the vest, and turned around. Turbo had her nose in the face powder, and suddenly sneezed, creating a cloud of white.

"You're lucky I never use that stuff. Now, I think I'll go for no 'tail' tonight," the teenager giggled, reaching around and snatching her brush, simultaneously pulling out her ponytail. Turbo froze in a look of doggie horror at the words, "no tail." While the girl brushed out her hair, Turbo sneezed again, shook herself, and moved to the bed. A few minutes later, the brush was set down, and a tube of lipstick was picked up.

Josh and Xam had finished getting ready long ago, and were wondering how a tomboy like their sister could take longer than a few minutes to get ready.

"She's probably playing with Turbo," Josh said finally. Kelly's door opened and closed, and a brunette figure appeared at the hallway entrance.

"Who's playin' with Turbo?" she asked calmly. Both teenage boys went into shock.

"You're wearing make-up," Xam observed. The brunette girl blushed.

"And a skirt," Josh added incredulously. Maxy raised an eyebrow at them.

"What, didn't think I could wear a skirt?" she asked, walking to the door. 

"Wait, I forgot something," Xam realized suddenly, taking off back into the hallway. He dodged into his room, pulled out his sketchbook, removed the finished group shot, and slipped it into Josh's room on his way back. His twins shot him questioning glances, and he shrugged innocently. The three of them piled into _Shadow,_ and started for N-tek.

*****

Maxy got ready to jump over the car door as Josh parked. Xam, in the front, caught her arm.

"That's not very lady-like," he teasingly scolded. Maxy stuck her tongue out playfully.

"Stuff that," she responded, then vaulted over the door and rushed inside. And nearly knocked down Rachel, though the younger woman did fall.

"You're awfully dressed up, especially for you. What's the occasion?" Rachel asked, helping her up. Maxy hurriedly dusted off her outfit, and grinned.

"I'm kidnapping Berto and taking him to a movie," she explained, rushing off. 

Berto ignored the control room door opening. By now, it was usually either a new agent, or someone in need of an item from the several shelves decorating the room. However, he did start when a pair of arms wrapped around his shoulders.

"Glad to see you're ready. Come on, we gotta get going," Maxy said, practically in his ear. Berto disengaged her arms, and got up, giving her a quick once-over.

"I didn't think you knew what a skirt was," he teased. Maxy twirled around playfully, the garment whirling out away from her body.

"Hey, look who's talking! How many times have you been out of uniform?" she retorted smartly, latching back onto his arm and leading her date out of the room.

Josh and Xam grinned, seeing them finally come out. Berto got in, then Maxy dropped into the middle seat. They were picking up DeRe next, which was only a few minutes drive.

"So we finally meet the infamous DeRe," Maxy joked. Xam sighed at her quip.

"That's what she said earlier. She really wants to meet you, Kel," he informed her.

"We're here," Josh prompted. Xam scrambled from the car, and walked up to the house. A few minutes later, Xam came back with a dark red-head sporting a black dress several inches longer than Maxy's skirt, and a jacket that matched her hair.

"Wow, she does look a lot like you, Kel," Josh observed quietly. And she did, right down to the flop-out bangs trademark of the Steel triplets. DeRe got in back with Maxy and Berto, and offered a large, brilliant smile.

"Josh is right, we do look alike," Maxy said in greeting. DeRe flushed in embarrassment.

"Wonderful to meet you too. So, who's this?" she replied, looking over at Berto. Maxy protectively scooted closer to him.

"This is Berto," she said, a slight "he's mine, back off, sweetie," tone on her voice. DeRe laughed at her.

"Oh, don't worry, honey. I've already got Xam here," she assured, reaching forward and messing up Xam's hair. He made a fake noise of protest.

*****

They arrived at the theater ten minutes later, and met Laura there. She saw them first, and waved brightly.

"Hey, brown-eyes," Josh greeted, sweeping her up in a hug and kiss.

"Who's the girl hanging off Xam?" Laura asked with interest, glancing past his shoulder, standing on the tips of her shoes.

"Oh, that's DeRe," Josh explained. Maxy smiled cheerfully, and pulled Berto in the direction of the entrance.

"Oh, come on. The movie's gonna start without us," she complained. The three couples entered in a group, and hurried to their viewing room.

Josh and Laura, and Xam and DeRe, took up seats in the back, while Maxy hauled Berto down to the second to front row.

"Maxy, where're you going?" Xam questioned. Maxy turned around briefly. 

"The sound's the best up front," she explained. Xam shot her a slightly hurt look, but said nothing. Other stragglers filed in, grabbed available seats, the lights dimmed, and the previews started. Maxy moved as close to Berto as the seat allowed, and rested her head on his shoulder. He put an arm around her shoulders. Up in the back, the other two couples mimicked them.

Maxy was almost nodding off during the middle of the show, which was incredibly boring, at least to someone like her, as it was a sappy romance film, when the sound suddenly shut off. Startled, the drowsy teenager sat up. The picture went next, tearing on the screen like it had been ripped out.

"What's going on?" Maxy murmured blankly, looking around. Many patrons were standing, complaining about the poor theater quality as they began to file out. The P.A. came on next, chilling all four Team Steel members.

"Sorry, folks, show's cancelled," Psycho's voice growled over the speakers. Berto and Maxy got up, and turned to head for the back.

"All the exits have been sealed, and there's a bomb planted _somewhere_ in this dump. Think anyone's brave enough to try to find it?" Psycho taunted. The screen burst into flame suddenly. Berto and Maxy froze, both looking at the flames.

"Maxy! Berto! Get out of there!" Xam shouted frantically. Neither moved, and the screen was starting to weaken. At the last possible second, Berto broke out of the trance he'd been in, and jerked Maxy to the side. By some strange miracle, the two teenagers escaped the flaming screen, but ended up in the exitless corner of the theater, trapped by the screen, now laying in the seats. They backed against the wall.

"No!" Josh cried, moving to try and get them. Laura grabbed his arm.

"Are you crazy?! You'll be killed!" she shouted at him. Josh shook his head.

"I can't stand here and do nothing!" he replied. Xam threw him a fire extinguisher. He grinned in gratitude. _Get everyone out of here,_ he said mentally. Xam nodded, and shepherded a very unwilling Laura, DeRe, and a clump of people too petrified to move out the door. Josh jumped on the seats, and made his way down as close as he could, then turned on the extinguisher, making a path along the wall.

"About time you got here!" Maxy shouted at him. Josh grinned, despite the situation, and gave both of them a hand up onto the seat backs. Quickly, they shot up to the back, just as the place Berto and Maxy had been was engulfed by the flames.

"That was just a little too close," the youngest teen muttered as they entered the lobby. Judging by the thick knot of people clustered there, each room had been the same. Xam appeared then, without Laura and DeRe.

"The girls are helping calm people down and get everyone towards one exit," he panted.

"Great. Kelly, you go help them. We'll find Psycho," Josh instructed. The brunette shook her head stubbornly.

"No way. Where you go, I go. No arguments," she stated. Josh and Xam started to object, but Berto stopped them.

"We don't have time. I'll go help them," he volunteered. Maxy hugged him, and smirked at her brothers. They split up into their respective groups, and parted.

"Okay, where would Psycho put a bomb?" Josh mused, transforming. Maxy transformed as well, just so she was in her gymnastics leotard instead of a skirt. Amazingly, there were no comments from either of her brothers.

"Try the main P.A. room," the now blonde girl suggested. They took off, running as fast as possible. Dread guards popped up, and they were dealt with accordingly.

Kelly's hunch turned out to be right. The trio found their target, along with another dozen lackeys. Psycho grabbed the bomb, and took off for the stairs.

"I'll get him!" Xam shouted, squirming through the clutch of guards.

"Just be careful!" Kelly cautioned, elbowing a guard in the chest. Her brother grinned, and vanished up the stairs. He caught sight of his quarry going up the rooftop stairs, and followed. The tight stairwell exploded into the perfect setting for a dramatic fight under the moon and stars. Not like either of the contenders really cared.

"Smiley, long time no see!" the triplet shouted, having cornered him on the roof. Psycho held up the bomb.

"It goes off in five minutes, Steel. If you surrender, I'll stop the timer," he offered. Xam shook his head quickly.

"I won't turn on them, ever again," he said firmly, taking a fighting stance. The opposing party did as well, still holding the bomb. The fight ensuing was intense. Twice, the super-powered agent found himself nearly diving to meet the pavement several stories below. The timer read less than a minute as Psycho brought down a hard hit to his opponent's back. He hit a sensitive spot, and Xam cried out, hitting the ground on his side, right leg literally useless. Whatever had been hit, it seemed to have immobilized his leg. Psycho towered above him menacingly.

"Give up?" he questioned cruelly. Xam gritted his teeth against the pain of his leg.

"I'd sooner throw myself off the building," he snapped, then, with extreme difficulty, sprang to his feet, and delivered a hard jump kick with his left foot, watching Psycho go over the edge. He caught the bomb, and fell back to the ground. Hastily, he moved to throw it over the roof, then realized the street was crowded. He fumbled with the wires, trying to shut it off, add more time, anything besides blow up. At last, the timer reset to ten minutes. With a sigh, the teen dropped it on the roof, and closed his eyes. _Bro, you've got ten minutes. Get everyone out of here,_ he sent. _What about you?_ his twin replied a second later. Xam winced as he staggered to his feet, still unable to move his right limb. _I'll be down in a second,_ he promised, limping as best he could towards the stairs. He slipped on them, and fell down, thudding on the floor on his back. New pain rose in his back, but he forced himself to get up.

Josh, having transformed back to his civilian form, sighed in relief as the last person was moved as far from the building as possible. Kelly, back to being Maxy as well, Berto, DeRe, and Laura stood near him.

"I don't like this. Xam should be here by now," the female brunette muttered. Josh sent a message to his clone. _Xam, what's the hold-up? Are you hurt?_ he asked. _Don't worry, I'll get out of here before it blows. I've still got another couple minutes,_ Xam assured, just before he slipped, and fell down the last flight of stairs. He collapsed there, taking a hard hit to the head that sent him into unconsciousness. Four stories above, the timer ticked down. The last second clicked. There was a soft beep, and an explosion. Berto and Josh rapidly shoved the three girls back.

"XAM!" Maxy screamed. Her much stronger brother gripped her tightly, foiling her attempts at running forward to search for him. The upper floors were flaming, and the last two seemed to have collapsed. _Xam, where are you? _Josh thought, fighting his sister. Fire department crews arrived, and started dousing the fire. The chief came over, and spotted the group.

"The crowd's buzzing about a group of kids getting them out. Would that be you five?" he asked politely.

"Yeah," Josh replied. The chief frowned at Maxy, who by this time had been transferred to Berto, and was in mild hysterics.

"Is she hurt?" he asked with concern.

"No, her brother's in there somewhere, her...twin brother," Josh explained with some difficulty. The chief nodded and vanished. Seconds later, two men in fire resistant gear dashed by the group and ran inside the building.

"Joe, you see the kid?" one called, stepping over some flaming ceiling bits.

"Not a trace, Mike. I don't see how some teenage kid could be dumb enough to--good lord! I found him!" Joe stated in surprise. Mike rushed over. A hand was visible under several pieces of ceiling. The two men hauled the debris away, and gasped. Xam was under the pieces, alive, barely. They moved him onto a piece of ceiling, and carried it out.

"Xam!" Maxy and DeRe screamed, seeing them come out. Josh caught DeRe as she tried to run over, and Berto tightened his grip on Maxy, holding her in place. However, she went into a trance instead, watching them load Xam on a stretcher and place him in an ambulance. As the vehicle roared away, Josh stumbled as a mammoth headache suddenly washed over him, and let go of DeRe. Maxy looked up from her place pressed against Berto's chest.

"You okay, big bro?" she asked weakly. Josh shook his head, and rubbed his temples.

"Bad headache," he mumbled, feeling dizzy. Maxy and Laura reached out to steady him.

"I say we go to the hospital and find out how Xam is," the brunette suggested quite calmly. Berto nodded, and they left, everyone but Laura in _Shadow_. She would take her own car, and follow them.

"I hope Xam'll be okay," DeRe said tearfully as they sped along the highway. Maxy, not trusting Josh's reflexes at the time, had assigned Berto to drive. She seemed to have calmed down much more than everyone else.

"Hey, don't worry. Xam's gonna be just fine. He's tougher than you'd think," Maxy assured DeRe confidently, patting her shoulder. The red head smiled at the gesture.

"Sorry, it's just...y'know, I don't want to lose him. But, you must feel worse than I do, since he's your twin..." DeRe trailed off, wondering if she'd gotten too deep. Maxy, however, seemed fine, still wearing a serene look. 

*****

Several hours later found the group still at the hospital, waiting for word on their sixth group member. Rachel, Nez, Mairot, and Smith had all been notified, and both Rachel and Jake had shown up, fortunately right after Laura had left. Josh's headache seemed to be getting worse, and aspirin hadn't helped.

"Did you get hit hard by something?" Maxy asked calmly, handing him another glass of water and two white pills. He shook his head, and downed the medication.

"Don't think so," he added, then pressed hard on his temples. _What's up? Is Xam trying to tell me something?_ he thought. Next to him, his sister frowned with mild concern, and leaned against her boyfriend, though the gesture seemed kind of robotic.

"What about you? Are you okay?" Berto asked, putting an arm around her. Maxy nodded, and sighed.

"Just worried," she murmured, and looked over at DeRe. She was sitting on one chair, knees drawn up to her chest, heels on the chair edge, in a different part of the waiting room. She rocked back and forth slightly, face buried against her knees. Maxy got up and went to her. For several moments, neither girl said anything.

"Interesting way to spend the end of a date," DeRe commented after a moment, raising her head slightly.

"I'd agree, but I'm pretty sure I've had worse," Maxy replied, still in a bland, dream-like state. DeRe frowned and put a hand to her companion's forehead.

"Are you feeling okay? I mean, I've only known you a few hours, but you're not acting much like you were earlier," she observed.

"I noticed that too," Josh interjected as he and Berto came over.

"Oh, lay off, you two. This is just her way of handling stress," Berto scolded, lightly resting a hand on his girl's shoulder. DeRe and Josh looked chastened, then the latter groaned and dug his palm into his forehead. Everyone, including Jake and Rachel, who had just joined the group's new location, shot him a round of concerned looks.

"I'm fine. That dumb headache," he assured quickly. Maxy looked thoughtful.

"Maybe you're picking up on Xam's condition," she suggested. DeRe turned and gave her a strange look.

"What?" she questioned. Maxy realized, vaguely, what she'd said.

"Oh, nothing. I was talking about something else," she explained quickly. Rachel spoke up before DeRe could press the issue.

"I asked about Xam," she said calmly. Instantly, she had the attention of all the others in her group, DeRe especially, Maxy the least. "He was still in surgery, and they wouldn't tell me much else, but I heard a doctor who came in. It's going to take a while longer before he's out of danger, and even then..." she trailed off, letting silent words speak for themselves. DeRe's eyes filled with tears.

"But...but...Xam's gonna be okay, right?" she asked childishly. Maxy turned to the distraught girl, and hugged her.

"Of course he'll be okay. He's my twin brother, after all," she assured with confidence, momentarily acting like her usual self. DeRe smiled softly, but didn't look convinced. Josh sighed and leaned back against the wall, and dropped his head to his chest. His head was pounding, and everything seemed a little blurry.

"Hey, maybe you should sit down," Jake's voice cut through his sub-conscious. He blinked, and shook his head.

"Oh, nah. I'm fine, really," he insisted. Maxy shot him a raised eyebrow, disbelief written all over her features, but said nothing.

*****

Two more hours passed, the two senior agents had left, DeRe was in mild hysterics, Maxy was acting like she had been heavily sedated, Berto was asleep, and Josh's headache was, if anything, getting worse. 

"I'm going to go see how Xam is," Maxy announced. Josh moved to go with her, was hit by a wave of dizziness, and fell down. The noise startled DeRe and woke up Berto.

"_Hermano,_ you okay?" Berto asked, yawning.

"I kinda doubt that. I told you to sit down, big bro," Maxy replied as she hauled her brother up and pushed him down in her chair.

"I felt fine," Josh argued, but made no attempts at moving. Maxy moved over to Berto.

"Make sure he doesn't get into more trouble," she whispered, delivering a passing kiss to his cheek. Her boyfriend nodded, and she walked towards the nurse's office. A woman, wearing scrubs, ran into her just outside the waiting room.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Wait, are you Maxy Steel?" the woman said quickly. Maxy nodded slightly, and waited for further information.

"Is it about my twin?" she pressed. The nurse nodded.

"I was coming to find you. Your brother is out of surgery, but we're keeping him down in the ER for observation until tomorrow," she explained.

"As long as he's doing better. Does this mean I can see him?" Maxy replied. The nurse nodded, and escorted the teenager into the back. They wove through the tangle of machinery, and stopped outside one room. The door was open, but the curtain was drawn. The woman tapped lightly on the door frame.

"Yes?" a firm male voice questioned. 

"Dr. Kiles, I have Mr. Steel's sister out here, and she'd very much like to see her brother," the nurse answered.

"Send her in," was the reply. The nurse nodded to Maxy, and pulled back the curtain. Maxy had to stop from gasping when she saw her brother. Aside from the hospital decor, which was never cheerful, Xam had at least five or six different monitors hooked up, and a breathing tube. The girl tore her eyes away from him, and to the doctor, managing a small smile for appearance's sake.

"Hello, I'm Maxy Steel," she offered, holding out her hand. The doctor nodded.

"Walter Kiles," he replied, shaking her hand. Maxy turned to Xam's motionless form.

"So...is he going to be okay?" she asked calmly, heart pounding. She wondered if Dr. Kiles could hear it.

"Well, I'd really like to give you a definite answer, but as it stands, he could go either way. The internal damage was severe, and we had a little trouble fixing him up. Right now, he's in a coma. The best we can hope for is that he'll wake in a day or two, just because of the surgery, but the sooner he's awake, the better," he explained. Maxy felt she should have said something then, but she couldn't find words. The cold realization that Xam might not be fine was sinking in.

"Well, I should go. My brother, cousins, and Xam's girlfriend are going to want to know," she said at last.

"Of course," Kiles said, walking her out. Maxy smiled at him from the door, and hurried to find her group. She had just left the ER, when a nurse put up a sign, reading, "visiting hours are over." She sighed, and headed for the waiting room. Her group was where they'd been before.

"That took a while. Is Xam out or something?" DeRe asked hopefully.

"Yeah, he just came out of surgery," Maxy replied, grabbing the chair next to Berto. 

"That's great," Josh said, forcing enthusiasm through his intense headache. His sister caught the edge to his voice, and frowned.

"I'd say that's not a headache, it's some kind of freak migraine," she remarked.

"You're right. Where's the aspirin?" Josh replied. Maxy shook her head.

"You took some an hour ago. And the last thing we need is you out for overdose," she told him firmly. DeRe switched the conversation back to Xam.

"Can I go see Xam?" she asked, hopefully.

"You can check, but I think visiting hours are over. And he's not in the best of shape. Things are still shaky for him," Maxy replied, wincing inwardly at the hurt expression on her brother's girlfriend's face.

"What do you mean?" Berto interjected then.

"He's in a coma. The doctor said he could wake up in a day or two, a week, a month, or...never," the girl replied, finding it hard to get around the last few words.

"B-but, he's gotta be okay!" DeRe cried suddenly. Maxy looked over the rag-tag group. DeRe was in hysterics, Josh looked ready to pass out, and Berto wasn't looking much better off than how she felt herself. 

"You know, I think we should get out of here," she said at last.

"But, what about Xam?" DeRe asked, sounding as if she'd been planning to stay the night. Maxy put a hand on her semi-look-alike's shoulder.

"Ree-Ree, you won't get to see him until tomorrow anyway. Come on, you can stay over at our house. You too, Berto," she said evenly.

"Oh, okay," DeRe sighed. Maxy hauled Josh to his feet, and supported him carefully on the walk to the car.

"I'm driving," Maxy announced with an authoritative tone that left no room for objection. Berto claimed the seat up front, while DeRe and Josh had the back.

"Just so you know, Max'll probably show up at some point," Maxy called in the back to DeRe. She acknowledged this with a nod.

"Max is Xam's twin, right?" the red-head asked after a minute.

"Yeah," Maxy replied evenly, eyes never leaving the road. 

*****

After the half hour drive, the group arrived back at the suburban house, and filed in. They hauled a cot into Kelly's room for Berto, and DeRe set her purse down in Xam's room. The group found itself in the living room, each one completely mentally and physically drained out. Within minutes of sitting down, Josh had conked out, forehead resting on the arm of the couch. His sister took his pulse, then declared him to not be in any danger. Berto locked eyes with Maxy, and an insta-message was sent.

"You should head for bed, Ree-Ree. Don't worry, Berto and I'll take care of this guy," Maxy assured her brother's girl. DeRe nodded, and left the room.

"I'll get his legs, you take the top," Berto said as soon as they heard the door close. Maxy nodded, and hooked her hands under Josh's arms, while her boyfriend caught the teen's ankles. They lifted him off the couch, and down the hallway, and into his room. After dumping him on the bed, both sat down in the end.

"Hey, what's this?" the girl asked suddenly, noticing a piece of paper laying on her brother's desk. She stepped over, and picked it up. Berto came up and looked at it too. It was the groupie Xam had done earlier that day.

"Wow, nice drawing. If it was in color, it'd be hard to tell it's not a real photo," Berto observed. Maxy nodded, and looked to the corner for the creator. Both teens' eyes widened at the signature.

"Xam? Huh, never knew he could do this kind of thing," the only female in the room noted. Her man nodded his agreement. Maxy set the page back in it's place, then stepped over and pecked her sleeping brother on the cheek.

"We should get some sleep too. Long day tomorrow," Berto prompted. His girlfriend nodded, and turned to the door.

*****

DeRe was the last to wake the next morning, finding herself in Xam's room. She got up and wandered out to the living room. Maxy was there, along with Berto.

"Oh, hi you two. Where's Max?" she greeted, yawning. Maxy looked up from the pan she was cooking in. She smiled brightly in return.

"Bright and early, eh, Ree-Ree? In case you're wondering where Josh is, we took him to a doctor. His headache was getting worse. Max is around here somewhere," she offered, expertly flipping the pancake she was working on.

"The only thing Maxy can make without destroying anything: pancakes," Berto joked brightly. The refrigerator opened and, without warning, a pancake, cooled to an almost rock consistency, collided with his head.

"I've got a few more in here if anyone else wants to try smart remarks about my cooking," she cautioned. Berto picked up the pancake, which had landed on the table, bit into it, and made a fake "yuck! that's awful!" face.

"Okay, something must have fallen into this one," he gagged, trying not to laugh. As he'd been warned, another pancake frisbeed against his head.

"And boyfriends do not get off easy," Maxy added, turning back to the stove. 

"I was kidding!" Berto objected, the threw a pancake back at her, catching her mid-back.

"Are you trying to start something?" the female brunette asked sweetly, a hint of playful malice in her tone. She caught sight of DeRe's expression, and silenced herself.

"Oh, it's okay. I'm still really worried. But I don't get it. Why did Xam stay in there until the place collapsed? I know he's a dare-devil, but that was just plain stupidity," she questioned. The room silenced, then Maxy "accidentally" dropped a half-full bowl of pancake batter. In the confusion of cleaning up, DeRe's question was forgotten.

"Nice save," Berto whispered, wiping at the refrigerator door with a sponge.

"Yeah, but...do you know how much time I put into the batter?" Maxy whined softly, then got up and wandered down the hall to her brother's room. She came back out a minute later, looking serious, unusual for her.

"What's up? Why the worry face?" DeRe piped, seeing the younger girl's expression. Maxy smiled at her in reply, and crouched beside Berto, who was swabbing at the pancake batter with a washcloth.

"The phone's in my room. Call N-tek, have us put on emergency call," she muttered as softly as possible. He nodded, and brushed past DeRe. The red headed female came up and dropped a washcloth in the sink.

"I'm really sorry about all of this. I know you probably weren't expecting a date to end like this," Maxy offered, running some water into one of the batter bowls. DeRe smiled a little, and shrugged.

"When I met Xam, I knew that I was asking for trouble. I'm just as much of a risk-taker as he is, so I figured we balance out," she replied, brushing the end of her ponytail past her shoulder. 

"Funny, I'd always thought I'd end up with a guy like one of my bros; big, strong, y'know, some kind of body-builder. But instead, I'm attracted to a nice, quiet, _very_ sarcastic, but very sweet, intellectual," Maxy chuckled, just as Berto came in, having caught her reply to DeRe's comment. 

"I'm not _that_ sarcastic," he objected innocently. 

"Wanna bet?" Maxy responded smartly, while giving him a sweet smile. He smirked in reply. DeRe covered her mouth to quiet the giggles rising in her throat. Then the girl brunette became quiet.

"Something wrong?" DeRe asked worriedly. Maxy looked over towards her brother's room. Being the only one with sensitive hearing, she could hear his somewhat pained breathing, almost as if he was being partially strangled.

"If we try to go visit Xam, Max'll want to go, and he's in no condition to be running around. So I can talk him into staying put, not saying that will actually work, or we can have someone stay here and keep an eye on him, or I'll see if there's any sedatives in the medicine cabinet," she said in a low voice.

"The first thing. I don't think he needs anymore aspirin or knock-out pills," Berto piped quickly. Maxy nodded at him, then wandered down the hall to Max's room, tapped once on the door, then entered. He was laying on the bed face-down, and it was difficult to tell if he was awake. She stepped over and pressed two fingers to the pulse-line in his wrist. Her touch startled him, and he turned onto his back.

"Hey, big bro," Maxy said softly, placing a hand on his shoulder. His face was pretty flushed, and he seemed to be sliding in and out of reality.

"I don't feel that great," he replied weakly. His twin smiled gently, and moved her hand to his forehead. He had a fever, she was pretty sure.

"I think you're coming down with something, Josh. Okay, Berto, Ree-Ree and I are gonna go see how Xam is. You try to fall asleep, okay?" she said as clearly as possible. He nodded, and she bent to kiss his cheek, then left the room.

"That took a while. Did you talk him to sleep?" DeRe asked, a little teasingly, seeing the girl return. Berto looked up from fiddling with the toaster.

"Not quite. He's running a fever, so he'll stay here until we get back," Maxy replied, shepherding the others out the door. Turbo, trapped in Maxy's room, whined to be let out. She was ignored as the trio got into _Star_, and drove away.

"Thrilling day. Wonder how biggie bro's doing," Maxy said, halfway to the hospital. The others in the car nodded.

Xam had been moved from the emergency ward to a room close by. He hadn't gotten any better, according to the doctor. DeRe rushed to her boyfriend's side as soon as they were let into his room. Maxy and Berto followed, but remained by the door. The red headed young woman kissed her unconscious boyfriend on the cheek, as he had an oxygen mask covering his mouth, and spoke in a low voice, squeezing his hand.

"He doesn't look too good," Maxy whispered to Berto. The teenage scientist nodded slightly, and stepped over to the monitors, looking at them closely.

"Hmm, looks like he could be communicating with Max, see this blip?" he said to Maxy, being careful not to let DeRe hear him. His girl nodded, and took her brother's hand.

"Cone on, biggie bro. You have to wake up," she pleaded softly. His face didn't change, he remained looking asleep. Tears were forming in DeRe's eyes.

The three remained in the room for almost an hour before a nurse came in a kicked them out, as she had to take the teenage boy for more x-rays.

"How bad was the damage?" Berto asked, pulling both girls back. The nurse smiled a little at them, and wiped her hands off on her apron-like scrubs.

"I won't lie to you kids. Whatever he was hit by, it was enough to bruise some of his internal organs. We're not really sure how long it'll take for the damage to be repaired," she explained in two sentences. The three teenagers waited until they'd wheeled him out, then left the room.

"He's gonna be fine," Maxy said in a firm voice, full of confidence, and patted DeRe on the back. Berto smiled at both girls, and looked up at the open door as they passed by it. There was a feeling of dread resting in the bottom of his stomach, like a piece of fruitcake, seeing the name of one of his closest friends on the tag. "Xam Steel."

*****

Back at home, they found Max sound asleep, and still running a fever, which had gotten worse. It seemed to concern both Berto and Maxy more than DeRe expected.

"What do you think's wrong with him?" the female brunette asked her boyfriend quietly. DeRe was in Xam's room, taking a nap. They were free to talk casually, as long as they kept it down. Berto frowned slightly, looking down at Max's flushed face.

"I don't know. I don't remember any of you guys getting sick. The max probes are supposed to fight off germs," the younger teenager replied. Maxy took her brother's wrist, and held her fingers to the pulse-line. The beat was rapid, odd for the fact that he was laying down, and to the best of her knowledge, had been for the past few hours.

"Check this out," she said to Berto, holding out her brother's limp arm. The younger agent frowned worriedly as he felt the pulse beat.

"Maybe we should get him to N-tek," he suggested, replacing Max's arm on the bed. Maxy yawned, and checked her watch. It was only five, but still, the recent past had been tiring. DeRe came in then, looking bleary.

"Is he still sick?" she asked, rubbing her eyes. Maxy nodded, then pointed to the picture on the table. 

"It's something Xam drew," she explained. DeRe picked it up, and nodded with a smile. "He said he was an okay artist, but I guess he was being modest," she chuckled softly. "Sounds like my biggie bro," Maxy retorted, then moved to shepherd the group out the door, leaving Max to rest. In the hall, she reached over to her room, and let Turbo out. The animal shot for the backdoor, which her owner was quick to open.

"What next?" Berto asked once they were in the living room. His girlfriend frowned thoughtfully for a moment, then turned to the kitchen.

"I'll make dinner. DeRe, you want to stay another night? Berto?" she said finally. Both nodded their agreement, and DeRe moved to go help Maxy. Berto headed downstairs to play _Judo Enforcer 3000_. One of the girls let Turbo back inside.

"Men. Always happy so long as the TV's on," Maxy quipped, grabbing a can of soup. DeRe eyed it with a raised eyebrow.

"We're having chicken soup?" she asked dumbly. Maxy giggled, and dumped it into a pot, then added water and set it on the stove. Turbo whined with interest, craning her neck to see what had been done, and more importantly, if it was for her.

"Of course not. That's for Max. We're having whatever I can thaw and flash fry," she explained, opening the freezer. Turbo tried to get up on the stove.

Twenty minutes later, the girls joined Berto downstairs with a plate of nachos, having left Turbo to "watch the soup."

"Hey, my favorite," the young man chuckled as Maxy jumped on the couch, just barely managing to hold onto the plate. She pecked him on the cheek.

"Kinda figured that. Dig in!" she replied, setting the plate on the table. DeRe sat down beside her, and both females watched the video game Berto had been playing with interest. It wasn't _Judo Enforcer 3000_, amazingly. For a few minutes, there was a relaxed atmosphere, until a loud crash sounded from the kitchen.

"What was that?" Berto asked, dropping the controller. Maxy was already on her feet, and heading for the door.

"Aw, great. Turbo probably just trashed the kitchen," she sighed, going up the stairs in twos. DeRe was on her heels, and Berto a few steps behind.

"Turbo does this often?" DeRe asked, pausing at the top of the stairwell. Berto nodded, and brushed by to follow Maxy.

"Well, at least it wasn't the soup," the brunette reasoned half-heartedly, looking down scoldingly at Turbo, who was happily eating the chili they hadn't put in the nachos, which the dog had dumped on the floor. 

"Bad dog!" Berto added, pointing sternly at his girlfriend's pet. The animal licked his hand, then swallowed the last of the chili. Maxy shushed him, just as DeRe came in.

"Hmm, nice lookin' mop you have here," she chuckled, grabbing Turbo's tail. The canine growled playfully, and locked her jaws around DeRe's hand.

"I don't think she's mop, more like a giant ring," Maxy observed, pouring some of the soup into a bowl. DeRe backed out of the kitchen with Turbo, both refusing to let go.

"I'll drop the tail if you drop the hand first," the red-head offered. Turbo growled again and shook her head. Maxy chuckled and rolled her eyes.

"Turbo never gives in first. This could go on for days," she said, picking up the bowl.

"What should I do with this?" Berto asked, holding up the chili pot. It had several teeth marks in the metal.

"Leave it in the sink. You guys can go back downstairs, I'll be down in a minute," the girl brunette replied. Berto did as told then headed for the game room. DeRe backed into the room, still engaged in a stand-off with Turbo.

"Turbo, you are going down!" Maxy heard DeRe shout as she entered her brother's room. He was still asleep, not surprisingly, and didn't seem to have changed at all.

"Big bro," his sister said firmly, setting down the bowl and shoving his shoulder a little. He made a noise of complaint, and opened his eyes.

"Hey, Kel," he greeted weakly. She smiled and patted his shoulder.

"Think you can keep some soup down?" she asked, nodding to the bowl. The ill teen looked over, then shook his head. Maxy shrugged and sat down beside him.

"How's Xam?" Max questioned. 

"He'll be fine, it'll just a take few days. But, what about you? Berto said the max probes are germ fighters," his sister replied, squeezing his shoulder.

"I don't know," he said weakly, and closed his eyes. Maxy leaned over and pecked him lightly on the cheek. His feverish skin seemed to burn her lips.

"Get some more rest, big bro," she whispered, then left the room. 

"Hey, we ate all the nachos. Sorry," DeRe greeted the younger girl, seeing her return. Maxy shrugged good-naturedly, and sat down on the arm of the couch.

"S'okay. I wasn't hungry. Whoa, what's that thing?" the brunette said, pointing at the screen. A large, crab-like monster was chasing a small figure around.

"End level super boss," Berto replied evenly, transfixed by the screen. Both girls demonstrated their lack of interest with yawns.

Much later, DeRe had fallen asleep, and Maxy was close, curled up with her head resting on Berto's leg while he continued to fight the random odd-looking characters scattered through out the game. The brunette yawned, and looked at her watch. It was almost eleven at night. They had been sitting there for hours.

"I'm gonna go check on Josh," she announced softly, getting up and heading for the stairs. Berto acknowledged her with a quick nod. Turbo met her mistress at the top of the stairs. Maxy offered a passing ear scratch as she walked to her brother's room. Amazingly, Turbo seemed to have understood the situation, and was appearing to stay out of trouble as much as possible. 

"Big bro? Josh?" she called in a low voice, pausing before opening the door, which was already slightly open. She stepped over to his side, and put a hand on his arm. Over her shoulder, she glanced at the soup she'd left, and saw it gone. She smiled, until she saw the little brown doggie hairs floating in the bottom. With a sigh, she turned back to her brother. Her sensitive hearing could pick up the slight strain his breathing had. Instead of trying to wake him up, she turned and left.

"How is he?" Berto asked, glancing up from the game as his girlfriend's hair bushed his cheek. She shook her head, and vaulted over the couch, landing so softly, DeRe didn't even stir in the slightest.

"Still asleep. Huh, maybe there are some kinds up flu even we can catch," the teenage girl mused, settling back into her place. DeRe was still sound asleep.

Maxy watched the seemingly endless flood of mutated bad guys dance and explode across the screen for another hour before reaching up to tap her boyfriend's shoulder. He dropped the controller with a sound of surprise, and looked down.

"Yeah?" he asked, yawning a little. She grinned and sat up.

"Honey, you've been playing this thing for hours. Maybe we should get to bed," the girl suggested, getting off the couch. Berto did the same, and stretched.

"What about her?" he questioned, nodding to DeRe.

"I'll get her. It's easy to pick up girls. It's my 'incredible hulk' brothers I have trouble with," Maxy replied. She did as said, and all three headed for the stairs. 

"'night, Ree-Ree," the teenage girl said, then shepherd her boyfriend out of the room. As soon as Maxy had shut the door, a pair of hands landed on her sides, and lifted her several inches into the air. She gasped and turned to look at Berto, who was easily holding her up.

"You're right, it is easy to pick up girls," he observed, swinging her around.

"Yeah, but have you ever tried picking up Josh or Xam on your own? It's like trying to pick up a house," she chuckled.

"No, haven't tried. Hey, what about boyfriends?" he asked playfully, setting her down.

"Don't know. Let's find out," Maxy replied, spinning around behind him and wrapping her arms around his middle. She lifted him up several inches, then both fell over.

"Nope, can't pick up boyfriends," the teen girl observed. They both laughed.

*****

The next morning, no one in the house was up until around noon. At that point, Turbo had gone and knocked something over, waking Maxy, followed by Berto when the teenager accidentally stepped on him while getting out of bed. 

"Tee! You should know better than to run around the house like that!" Maxy scolded her pet, who was sitting sheepishly in a heap of dirt from the potted plant she'd been wrestling with. DeRe came out of Xam's room then, yawning and re-tying her mussed dark red hair, and wearing a pair of borrowed shorts and shirt.

"Morning. Anything new? Has someone called the hospital?" she asked with a hopeful touch on her tone. Both Berto and Maxy shook their heads.

"Try to keep it down a little. Max has a flu bug or something," Maxy cautioned in a soft voice. DeRe looked sheepish.

"Then maybe we should get out of here for a while," Berto suggested quietly.

"Like where? Visiting hours are over until four," Maxy retorted calmly. Turbo padded over to the front door, and scratched gently on it before turning back to the humans. She whined softly, and pawed at the ground, hoping they'd get the point.

"Turbo wants to go to the beach," Maxy observed intelligently. Turbo started to bark eagerly, but cut it off and sneezed instead.

"Let me guess. The dog is the decision maker of the household?" DeRe asked dryly, smiling sweetly at the dog. Turbo nodded her head proudly.

"Close enough. Well, come on. We can at least let her run around a little," Maxy decided, grabbing Berto's arm and dragging him towards the door. DeRe chuckled, right on their heels. Turbo galloped to the car, leapt over in the door, and into the front passenger seat. Maxy imitated her pet, taking the wheel instead.

"I called shotgun," Berto pouted briefly before getting into the seat behind the dog, who gave him a triumphant look. DeRe laughed as she settled into the other seat.

"You call it, honey, but then you gotta beat her to it," Maxy chided, revving the engine and shifting into reverse. The car backed slowly out of the driveway.

Ten minutes later, the group pulled into a parking space in the Del Oro Beach, the "D.O.B." for short. Turbo jumped the door, and bolted for the water's sandy edge, but returned in half a second when Maxy whistled. She pranced around the car impatiently, waiting for the others to get their butts out of the vehicle. 

"Relax, silly girl. The water's not gonna dry up in three seconds," DeRe chided the dog, who snorted disbelivingly, put her paws up on the back passenger's seat door, and barked at Berto to hurry up. He stuck his tongue out at her, and deliberately moved slower, at about one inch per ten seconds. Both girls chuckled at boy and dog.

"Kinda like being with me?" Maxy asked sweetly, one hand on her hip. Her boyfriend shook his head quickly.

"No, she's evil. You're not," he said simply. The teenage female got a devilish smile on her face, and slipped around to Berto's side of the car.

"Who says I'm not evil?" she asked in a bad impression of a transylvanian accent, leaning over the male teenager, hands curled like claws and her face twisted in a stupidly fearsome expression. DeRe started laughing, and leaned against the door for support. Berto looked up at Maxy.

"_Yo amo tu_," he said, smiling and extending the last word for a second longer. She dropped the "scary face," and kissed him.

"Love you too," she returned, then grabbed his arm and tried to drag him over the door. He complied, and jumped the barrier. Turbo, pleased that they were finally on their way, bounded ahead of her group, then circled back behind them. She slipped up behind Berto, and nipped his left ankle, causing him to jump. He tried to kick some sand at her. She caught his leg, right at the calf. Maxy started when her partner was suddenly not beside her, and instead having a fight with the canine unit of the group.

"I thought he was the calm one out of your little group. What is it, you, Max, Berto, that girl Rachel, and the dog?" DeRe observed, as Maxy stood there, slowly shaking her head.

"Turbo's the exception. Well, and me. He's funny once you get to know him. _Bee-to_, ho-oney, let's go! You and the puppy can talk it out later," she called at him, using a higher, somewhat whiny voice. He turned and glared at her, Turbo still gumming his ankle, growling and trying to get him to retaliate. 

"I'm coming," he called, shaking Turbo off. She jumped around him, barking madly.

The two girls settled on the sand less than two yards from the water, while Berto was amusing Turbo. Maxy folded her arms behind her head, and stretched out, not caring about getting sand in her hair.

"It's nice out here," DeRe commented, hugging her knees to her chest. Maxy turned her head to look up at the older female.

"It's nice here, but trust me, with Josh and Xam along, it's too fun. Someone'll get Turbo going, usually Xam, then all chaos breaks out. We've all had our share of bumps and bruises thanks to that canine," Maxy chuckled, just before "that canine" bounded up and landed on her.

"Loveable little lady, aren't you?" DeRe said sweetly, patting Turbo, who was still perching on a groaning Maxy's stomach.

"Get off of me, you over-sized cotton ball!" the brunette yelled, scaring the animal into backing up a few feet. Turbo whined and shot DeRe a plaintive look.

"Aww...poor baby. Everyone picks on the mutt," she sympathized, only to be slammed into the sand by an irritated puppy-dog.

"Never, I repeat, never, call her the 'm' word," Maxy explained simply, sitting up. DeRe pushed Turbo off, just as Berto plopped down beside his girlfriend. Turbo tried to jump on him. The well-trained teenager rolled to one side, and the dog hit sand.

"Hey, you finally out-smarted her. Congratulations, Berto!" Maxy teased, patting him on the back. Turbo whined, and tackled her mistress.

"You, however, need to stay on your guard, _novia_," the younger teenager retorted calmly. Maxy was busy wrestling with Turbo, and didn't answer.

Half an hour later, Berto was occupied with drawing up the plans for an extensive sand castle, using some smoothed out sand and a stick, Maxy was knee-deep in the water with Turbo, and DeRe was asleep nearby.

"Berto, heads up! She's soggy, and out for blood!" Maxy yelled suddenly, startling Berto and waking DeRe, just before the former was smashed into the ground by thirty pounds of dripping wet Turbo.

"She lives for these moments, doesn't she?" DeRe asked, chuckling, as Berto squirmed out from under the dog, who in turn destroyed his "building plans" with her tail. Maxy came bolting out of the water, did a hand spring, spun and back-flipped, performed another flip that got her facing the others again, and ended with a 360 degree somersault.

"Flexibility is the key, isn't it?" Berto asked with a chuckle. His girlfriend nodded brightly, before giving Turbo a taste of her own medicine, slamming her to the ground.

*****

Another two hours passed before the trio decided enough was enough, and returned to the house. 

"I'm gonna take a nap, if that's all right," DeRe announced, looking a little tired.

"Sure thing. If we need you, then we'll come in and drop an ice cube on your neck," Maxy promised, smiling. DeRe shot her a look that plainly threatened death as the consequence for that action, then trotted to Xam's room.

"Everything's going really strange. First Xam's accident, then Max. What's next?" Berto sighed, leaning back against the couch.

"Don't you dare jinx us, honey. But seriously, I think that Josh is actually picking up, so to speak, on Xam's condition. It's the only explanation," Maxy replied, settling on the floor. Berto rolled that one around for a moment. 

"Maxy, that's silly. They can talk to each other, not project how they're feeling," he chided after a moment. A pair of blue eyes turned on him, completely serious.

"Well, _Bee-to_, neither of us know what really their link allows, now do we? So, we can't make any assumptions. For all we know, there's no link, they just understand each other really well. With this kind of thing, you can't discount anything," she told him calmly. "Okay, I give. You're right. It's just a little hard to accept," Berto retorted.

"Don't I know it? Actually, I think the blast may have gotten me too, on a mild level. I can sense when they're talking to each other, and just a sense of what they say. It's kinda freaky, cause I think they are right now," Maxy explained.

"You guys look alike, and even pick on each other's thoughts. Wow, you and Max and Xam really are three of a kind," the Spanish teenager commented, grinning. Right then, the doorbell rang. Both teens got up to answer it, but Maxy got there first, and opened the door. She smiled brightly at the visitor.

"We had some down time, I thought I'd stop by," Rachel greeted them. Maxy nodded, and stepped aside to let her in.

"Did you stop by the hospital?" Berto asked. The older agent shook her head in response.

"I was planning to after I stopped here. Where are Max and DeRe?" she replied, glancing around.

"Ree-Ree's in Xam's room, taking a nap. And there's something wrong with Josh. He's running a fever and stuff," Maxy explained, then snapped her fingers and rushed for her "big bro's" room.

"What's got you so agitated?" Rachel questioned, as the teenage girl reappeared. In reply, Maxy held the paper out, covering the corner with her hand.

"Just guess who did this," she said brightly. Rachel studied it for a minute.

"Just a wild shot here, Berto?" she asked, looking over at the younger teenager. The said agent blushed and put a hand behind his head in embarrassment.

"So close. Check the signature," Maxy replied, removing her hand. Rachel looked at the neatly scrawled name, and nodded.

"Not that close," she said teasingly. From Xam's room there was a thud. Everyone reflexively jumped up and rushed into the room. Only to discover DeRe had fallen off the bed in her sleep. After flipping her back onto the mattress, the three agents left, passing by Max's room, choosing to leave the teen alone.

*****

Rachel left almost three hours later, after the three remaining agents had spent the time trying to figure out what to do next. It had been decided that if Max wasn't any better in a day or two, Maxy would bring him down to N-tek. DeRe came out of Xam's room just after the blonde agent left.

"I really wanted to thank you guys for letting me stay here, and for putting up with me acting like a three-year old," she said brightly.

"Don't worry about it. She's the same way," Berto chuckled, nodding to Maxy. She jabbed him in the side with her elbow, giving him a sweet smile at the same time. 

"What he meant to say is, 'stop by anytime.' Are you heading out? We were just about to go visit Xam," the brunette said with a smile.

"I'll tag along, but then I'd should at least stop by my place. Kani and the other girls I live with are gonna be worried, since I haven't been home since we went out yesterday," DeRe replied.

At the hospital, the nurses hesitated before letting the three visitors into the room.

"I'll get the doctor, but you can visit him in the meantime," one offered, a fake sweet smile on her face. DeRe instantly took her place at Xam's shoulder, gripping his hand tightly, pleading with him to wake. 

"You think he's getting worse?" Maxy asked her boyfriend softly. He looked up at the monitors, brow furrowing in concentration. Before the teenage boy could answer, the doctor came in. He smiled when he saw Maxy.

"Not surprised to see you here, young lady," he said graciously. Berto shot the brunette next to him a confused look. It took her several seconds to realize it was the same man she'd talked with on the night of the accident.

"Doctor Kiles, I thought you only worked in the E.R.," she returned, shaking his hand. The young man shook his head, and adjusted his stethoscope.

"Not always. But about your brother. I'm sorry to say, we're just not getting any results. Like I said, we aren't expecting him to come out of the coma for at least a few days, but his vitals are getting worse. He's in real danger if this keeps up," he explained, looking past the couple to DeRe and his patient. Maxy looked over as well.

"That's his girlfriend," she prompted. The doctor nodded soberly, looking past the pretty red head sitting by his patient, sneaking a glance out the window. Everything looked great out there, but sadly, hospitals were often never as wonderful. People came in badly injured, severely sick. Some did recover, and return back to the real world, not this fake world of bandages, blood, and pain, but the one outside, with the beautiful flowers and happy laughter. Some didn't, however, and the doctor was very worried this young man was destined to join the second group. 

"That's what I'd have guessed, after thinking she was your twin," he replied finally. Maxy nodded slightly, a mist of tears visible in her eyes as she gazed affectionately at her twin. _Come on, biggie bro! We need you back, _she thought. Berto let go of her arm, and she stepped forward, planted a kiss on her brother's cheek, and tapped DeRe, hinting that they needed to get going. She nodded, and leaned close to Xam's right ear, her lips almost brushing the lobe.

"Get better, hon. I love you," she just barely whispered into his ear. She straightened, delivering a lingering kiss as close to his mouth as she could get, and turned, nodding slightly to let Maxy and Berto know she was ready to go.

*****

Twenty minutes later, they were on the road, heading for the beach house to pick up DeRe's extra stuff, and check on the sick teenager still at the house. The sky had changed from day to night.

"Keep the engine warm," Maxy told Berto, as she and DeRe hopped over the doors, and bolted inside. Maxy let Turbo into the backyard, then rushed into her brother's room, vaguely hoping that he would have recovered. If anything, he looked worse. But then, he hadn't eaten much since Xam had landed in the hospital. His face was a little sunken, and pale.

"I've got my stuff!" DeRe called, and Maxy could hear her moving down the hall, and out the door. She gave her brother a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Be right back, big bro," she whispered, then left the room. DeRe and Berto were both waiting in the car when she came out and closed the front door. The brunette jumped the car door, and put the car in reverse.

"How's Max?" Berto questioned, leaning forward in his seat. The driving brunette shrugged her shoulders helplessly.

"Nothing new. I couldn't even get him to wake up for a second. Maybe we should take him to the hospital after we drop off Ree-Ree," she said in reply.

"Could be a good idea," Berto replied, yawning. Maxy glanced over at him.

"On second thought, I'll drop you off after her. If there's any of your stuff still at the house, I can bring it by tomorrow. Admit it, honey, you're beat. Don't worry about Max, I'll take care of him," she returned calmly. The younger teenager beside her thought about her comment for a moment.

"Fine. You're right," he agreed, just as they pulled up outside DeRe's house. The redhead, still wearing some of Maxy's clothes, jumped the door, pulling her bag with her.

"Thanks again for bunking me. I'll call you tomorrow," she promised. Both Maxy and Berto waved as she vanished inside the house.

"Now that all non-agents have left the vehicle, we can worry about work. How irritated do you think Smith is that I haven't been in lately? Even with the ER call, I probably should have been swinging by," Maxy said as they drove away.

"Not very. It's not that uncommon for agents to be idle while their partners recover, especially in the touchy stages, like with Xam. Add that Smith is your father as well, and you don't have to worry about getting in trouble," Berto assured in reply. The brunette nodded her relief.

"Well, then how come Rachel is still on duty? I want your reasons, since I've got my own," she continued.

"I'm assuming that she's just not used to staying idle. You've got to remember, she's been an agent longer than you or I. By this time, it'd probably be weird for her to not be working," the Spanish agent theorized.

"That makes more sense than what I thought," Maxy said thoughtfully.

"Really? What were you thinking?" the younger teen questioned with interest. Maxy took her eyes off the road for a half-second to fix him with a sweet smile.

"Nothing. It's stupid," she said flippantly. Her boyfriend prodded her shoulder insistently.

"Come on, _novia_. No secrets," he chided firmly.

"Okay, okay. My thinking was that she thinks we're a bunch of immature kids who shouldn't be on the force, and she's trying to avoid us. Either that, or the real Rachel's been kidnapped by aliens, and the alien they sent in disguise doesn't know how to act like her," Maxy said in one long breath, then panted slightly. To her mild surprise, Berto started laughing.

"Maxy, your alien theory is more believable than the first one. If she thought any of us were immature, she'd have said something. This is Rachel, and we both know she's not shy about speaking her mind," he said between chuckles. Maxy thought for a minute, then nodded her agreement.

*****

_Star_ pulled up outside N-tek, and the two teenagers escaped the vehicle. Maxy yawned, and glanced at her watch. It wasn't exceptionally late, only a little after eight, but she was getting tired from being so stressed out.

"See you tomorrow," Berto promised, hugging her tightly. The older brunette replied with a kiss to the lips, and smiled.

"I'll bring Josh around first thing, unless he starts improving. In the meantime, you get some sleep. You look ready to drop," she told him, giving him one last quick embrace.

"You too. In fact, you look worse than I do," he chuckled, quirking one eyebrow. She glared at him in mock anger, and punched his shoulder.

"Are you sure that's good way to keep your girlfriend?" she asked in a light tone.

"Is it working?" he returned smartly. The young woman didn't even hesitate.

"I guess it is. Love you," she replied, kissing his cheek, and going back to her car. Within a couple minutes, she was a black dot on the far away road. Berto looked up at the pink tinted sky, then turned, and headed into the building.

Maxy felt beat by the time she got home. The sky was dark blue now, but the stars had yet to appear. For a moment, the girl was content to simply rest her head on the steering wheel.

"Well, I'm about ready for a nice, long shower," she said to herself after a moment, jumping the door. A plaintive yap emitted from her room. Turbo was only too glad to see her when Maxy opened the door. The teenager took a moment to let the dog out, then stepped into her room. She dumped off the extra gear and such, then put on her uniform, and transformed. After dropping all but her sports bra and jeans, the teenager left her room, and entered the bathroom.

Her shower lasted no more than half an hour, before she got bored. Shutting off the water flow, she wrapped her towel around herself, gathered her clothes, and opened the door. To find herself face to face with her brother. He had transformed into his McGrath form, and looked a little better.

"Hey, lil' sis'," Josh greeted, yawning.

"Big bro! Hey, you're actually up," she replied, and started to hug him. He stopped her.

"Kel, you're dripping on the carpet, and you're wearing next to nothing. Go get dressed," he told her firmly. In her typical response, Kelly stuck out her tongue, and flounced off to her room. After finishing up toweling off her head, the blonde pulled on a white tank top, green shorts, and wandered back out to the living room. Where her brother was leaning against the counter, chewing on an apple.

"Feeling better, I'm assuming?" she asked with a smile, then hugged him.

"Some. The headache's not quite so bad. What happened to DeRe and Berto?" he replied, messing up her hair.

"Hey, not the hair! Well, Ree-Ree's back at her place, and Berto's back at N-tek," she explained, smoothing down her damp hair. Josh nodded in understanding, and finished off his apple.

"Hmm...well, it's getting kind of late, don't you think? Maybe we should turn in," he suggested, twisting his arm to show her the digital numbers.

"If you think so, big bro. Well, we are gonna get up early to visit Xam, so good night," the teenage girl agreed, stretching up to peck him on the cheek, turned to the back door to let Turbo in, then wandered down the hall to her room. The male McGrath yawned, and stretched. The headache was going away. He had to wonder if that meant Xam was getting better, but couldn't be sure. He turned to the hall, and froze. A flash image of a bomb struck through his vision. He shook his head, and wrote it off as nothing. Another flash, this one of a flaming stairwell. Confused, the teenager shivered slightly. He couldn't remember dealing with anything that resembled either of the images, at least, not those exact pictures.

"That's what I get for watching too much TV," he grumbled to himself, entering his room. Truth be told, he was beat. The headache, not to mention the sharp pains in his back near his right leg, hadn't made it easy for him to sleep. He'd been awake most of the time, but in some kind of half-conscious delirium. The blonde teenage agent was asleep the second his body hit the mattress.

Doctor Kiles frowned, looking at the paper in his hand. A low groan caught his attention, and he lowered the clipboard to see his patient writhing weakly against the Velcro binds the nurses had placed around him. The young man was rapidly getting worse, and was now having sudden, occasionally violent seizure-like spasms. After he'd nearly ripped out his IV in one of the struggles, Xam been strapped down. Though, it only seemed to make the jolts worse. The doctor stepped closer to the teenager, and sighed.

"You've got a lot of people who really want you back, kid. Don't slip away," he said quietly, checking the IV bag. The young man turned his head, and relaxed a little. Behind his closed eyes, Xam repeatedly relived through the last fight he'd had with Psycho. _When I get out of here, I am going to find Smiley, and rip that metal claw of his off, _the boy thought, just before his mind blanked out.

*****

Around three in the morning, Josh was having trouble sleeping. He'd been woken around one by an odd nightmare of him trapped in a flaming building, and hadn't been able to get back to sleep since. Suddenly, flashes started rocketing by his vision. Flaming movie screen. People. Dread minions. The flaming stairwell. Falling rubble. Psycho. The street, far below. DeRe. Kelly. Berto. Rachel. Himself. _Xam..._ he realized suddenly. Without warning, he suddenly felt as if a hand clenched his heart, squeezing it, trying to pop the vital organ. He sat up with a yelp of pain, right hand pressed against his chest, the left gripping the blanket. Red flashed in his eyes. His lungs seemed to contract, making breathing a difficult chore.

Kelly and Turbo were woken by the cry from Josh's room, the dog first. The teenager opened her eyes half a second after her pet.

"Huh? Tee, what was that?" the blonde teenager murmured, sitting up. Realization struck her in the face right then, and she jumped out of bed, and bolted for her twin's room, Turbo on her heels. The door was slightly open.

"Josh?" she called softly, then pushed open the door. If the young man in the bed even heard her, he made no sign. It took half a second for the female McGrath to register the odd breathing of her brother, and the look of pain on his face. With a gasp, she rushed over, situating herself on the bed. Turbo licked Josh's left hand, and whimpered.

"Big bro, what's wrong?" Kelly questioned, laying her right hand over his left. He didn't answer for a moment.

"Xam..." he said breathlessly. The blonde got up, slipped her left arm behind his back, and placed the other one on his chest. Tentatively, she slowly pushed down with her right hand, gently forcing him to lay back down. She moved to sit down again, and took his right hand in her left, while her right remained on his chest.

"I think we might need Dr. Kiles," Nurse Karks said to the intern beside her. Her gaze was fixed on Xam, who appeared to be taking a sharp downward turn. His heart and breathing were getting dangerously weak or slow. The mousy little intern nodded, and headed for the ER.

"Just take slow breaths. You'll be fine," Kelly instructed softly, trying to reassure both of them. She added a gentle squeeze to her brother's right hand. A worried frown crossed her face as she looked down at her left hand. His chest was rising less and less. The beating of his heart was slowing as well. His eyes were huge, and glassy. _Josh..._ the male twin heard Xam's voice in his mind. The pain increased sharply, but he didn't make a single noise. He took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled it. His body seemed to sink deeper into the bed, and his eyes closed. Kelly felt his breathing stop. A second later, his heart froze in mid-thump.

"Get the defibrillator!" Kiles ordered, as Xam flat-lined. The loud, continuous beep seemed to drill into the minds of the doctor, and the nurses with him. One of the girls vanished, and returned with a rolling cart, that had an odd looking piece of machinery. One of the nurses had already bared Xam's chest. Kiles took the paddles, and rubbed them together. He placed the disks on the teenager's chest.

"Clear!" he ordered. The patient's body jolted off the bed violently from the shock, but the monitor didn't register the return of life. The doctor sighed, and readied the disks once again.

"JOSH!" Kelly screamed, grabbing her twins shoulders, and rattling his body, hard. She grabbed his limp right hand,a dn pressed her fingers to his pulse line. Nothing, her heart sunk. She dropped his hand. _Okay...CPR, right below the sternum, where's that...?_ she thought frantically to herself, tracing down the bone in the middle of his chest. She placed both hands on his chest. _Pump three times, give a breath...right?_ she reviewed the health class instructions in her mind, then pressed down, hard, three times. Quickly, she moved up to his mouth, covered it with hers, pinched his nose shut, and breathed.

Josh looked down at his body, and his sister, desperately trying to revive him. At the same time, Xam watched as the hospital staff struggled to bring him back. 

"Did you have to let go like this? the blonde teenager commented to his clone. 

"I couldn't stop myself. If it was up to me, I'd prefer to still be alive, and more importantly, with you guys,"Xam retorted smartly. 

Think there's a way to get back into our bodies now? Kel's gonna be torn if we don't make it," Josh replied thoughtfully. 

"No time to waste, I say. See you in a bit," the brunette teenager responded. Both felt themselves drop back towards their bodies.

"I'm not getting a response, doctor," Nurse Karks said softly, looking down at the boy's closed eyes and pale face. Kiles shook his head, and pounded one hand on his leg.

"What happened?! He shouldn't have collasped like this," the doctor muttered angrily. One of the nurses silently shut off all the monitors. However, as her hand left one, she accidentally flicked the heart monitor back on.

"Josh, you'd better get your butt back here!" Kelly growled at the still form. She'd been doing CPR for the last three minutes, and he hadn't responded at all. Turbo was whimpering and dacing around nervously. The teenager pumped once more, then reached for her brother's wrist. A soft thump pushed against her fingers.

"All right!" she cheered, as the thumps became quicker and stronger. She watched his face anxiously, waiting for him to regain conciousness.

"Doctor, look at this!" the mousy intern exclaimed, pointing excitedly at the heart monitor attached to Xam's body. 

"What in the world...?" Nurse Karks gasped, seeing the steady strengthening beats. The teenager groaned softly, and turned his head. Kiles chuckled in relief as his patient opened his eyes, and looked around.

"Talk about an out-of-body-experience," Josh mumbled as he opened his eyes. Kelly threw her arms around his neck.

"That was a little too out of body for my tastes. I was so worried that you had..." she trailed off, not needing to finish, or wanting to. Her twin hugged her in return, and sat up. Already, he felt stronger. 

"Sorry about that. But, the good news is, Xam'll be okay," he added after a moment, looking down at the end of the bed. Kelly moved to sit by his knees.

"How do you figure?" was her reply.

"Xam was unconciously projecting his condition, and as the person he's linked to, I was picking it up. As he got worse, so did I," Josh explained intelligently.

"I was wondering why you were so slow after the accident, but I thought it was just exhaustion, and that you were worried about Xam," Kelly muttered thoughfully.

"Well, that was part of it," Josh agreed, one hand moving to comb through his hair.

"But, why did you drop completely like that?" his sister added after a moment.

"Xam tried to communicate with me just before, and I caught the full charge," the male twin shrugged. Kelly nodded in understanding.

"So now that you're okay, Xam will be too?" she asked in a hopeful voice. Turbo, satisfied that the danger was in the past, wandered over to Josh's sock drawer, and began nosing around in it, unnoticed by the two teenagers.

"As soon as the internal damage heals. But he's out of danger," Josh assured confidently. Kelly smiled, and hugged him again.

"Just so long as both of you will be fine, I don't care. But, big bro, please don't do that again," she told him, adding to the last sentence a slight scolding note in her tone.

"What, don't tell me the ever brave Kelly was actually _scared_ for a minute," the male twin couldn't resist teasing her. As expected, he recieved a swat upside the head from his sister for his rather pathetic attempt at humor.

"Darn right I was scared!" she snapped, grinning all the same.

"Amazing," Josh muttered under his breath, trying not to laugh. Kelly punched him playfully in the chest.

"Well, I'm going back to bed, and I suggest you do the same. It's been a long day, a long night, and Turbo, get your nose out of Josh's sock drawer!" she said, just as Turbo bolted away from the dresser, and out the door, a pair of the male blonde's socks hanging from her jaws.

"Wasn't a new pair," Josh shrugged. Kelly hugged him again, delivered a quick kiss to his cheek, and left the room, shutting the door behind her. Instantly, she sank down, back against the closed door, and rested her head on her knees. The shock was finally catching up to her. Of how close she'd come to losing both of them, forever.

  


_Okay, a bit of drama at the end, and throughout. I couldn't think of any other way to end it, so there it is. The next in the series is "Old Love Strengthens New." Catch ya there! Luv ya all!_

_-Maxy Steel_


	7. Old Love Strengthens New

_General disclaimer: The TV show Max Steel is not mine, though I really wish it was. It belongs to a number of companies whose names escape my memory at the moment, but my name wasn't on that list, if I recall. Kelly McGrath/Maxy Steel,and Xam Steel are my characters, Turbo is the creation of my friend and I and I will set my corgi-beagle on you if you use their names or their characters without my permission. Enough of that, on with the story!_

  


**OLD LOVE STRENGTHENS NEW**

**BY:**

**Maxy Steel**

  


**Timeline: About three weeks after "Three Of A Kind." No, I am not trying to be funny.**

  


Kelly woke in the middle of the night, and realized she was crying. _You idiot! You want Josh and Xam to hear you?!_ she shouted at herself mentally, violently slapping tears from her eyes. They stung briefly, and she blinked until they stopped.

"Then again, maybe I could talk this out with them," she whispered to herself, laying back down. Turbo crept up and snuggled against her back. The young blonde sat up again, and buried her face against the animal's furry back like a frightened three-year-old.

"I know I can talk with them about anything, but just this...doesn't seem like something you discuss with a brother," she murmured, gripping the fur on Turbo's shoulder tighter. The animal licked her knuckles gently, and put her head down. It was almost routine for her. Kelly would wake up sobbing, and Turbo played comforter as best she could. Minutes later, the girl fell back asleep, using her pet to drive away the nightmares.

*****

When morning came, Kelly found herself in an empty house, save Turbo. Xam had left a hastily scribbled note about spending the day with DeRe, and Josh simply said he'd be gone the whole day, but his comm line would be open.

"Well, today would be a good day to hide in the house all day," Kelly decided, which was rather uncharacteristic. She collected pillows, blankets, and sheets from the closet, fished a tent from the basement, and retreated to her room. Turbo watched with mild interest as her mistress cleared everything away until the middle of the room was bare. It took all of ten minutes to set up the tent, and then she spent another half hour arranging the materials to her satisfaction.

"There we go. Come on, Tee," she said, crawling inside. She laid down on the mat of blankets, and stared at the green peaked top of the tent. Turbo curled up in one corner, and sighed. _It'd be nice to talk with someone, but...how would I explain an old boyfriend to my brothers? But then, that's kind of only one part of it. Berto would listen, but I'm sure the last thing he'd like to hear is about Rick, especially what he did to me. Pretty much all guys are out, old boyfriend talks aren't their thing. Rachel's too busy, even though she'd understand,_ the blonde teenager thought. It seemed to her that there was no one left, she was completely alone. The lump in her throat grew and rose. Safe in the realization that there was no chance of anyone catching her, she grabbed a pillow, buried her face in it, and cried herself out.

When she woke, all she felt was a deep well of depression._ Crying never solved anything, it's just a way to tire out so you don't have to deal with everything,_ she thought, getting up. Turbo had left earlier through the open tent flap, and was nowhere to be found. With a heavy heart, the normally plucky teenager dragged herself out to the hallway. Turbo met her there, giving her a comforting lick across the palm.

"Hey there, Tee," the girl greeted listlessly. The animal snorted softly and raced down the hallway, tried to stop at the back door, couldn't, and smashed into the window. She turned slowly around, looking hopefully at her mistress. Kelly didn't even smile, so Turbo sighed and dropped her head...right into her water bowl. Even that didn't help the girl's mood, she simply picked up a towel and wiped off her pet and the surrounding floor.

"I wish Berto would just suddenly show up. But the chances of that are thin. He's got work and all that," she sighed, the sound turning into a whimpery sob. She snatched another towel, and buried her face in it. Turbo whined softly, the intense vibes of sadness washing over her. Kelly sank to the floor, face still hidden in the towel. Behind her closed eyes, a flash of the past appeared. A young man with black hair, holding a pocket knife, standing right in front of her. _ Rick..._ she thought for an instant. The image vanished, and she snapped her head up with a scream. Turbo yelped, and threw herself under the table, cowering at the invisible danger. Breath coming in short gasps, Kelly glanced around, looking sub-consciously for the man who had tormented her dreams for years. She sighed, and leaned back against the cabinet behind her.

"Rick...why can't you just leave me alone? It's been years," she whimpered, voice cracking near the end. _Years...how could he had left such an imprint on my life? _ she thought, hugging her knees tightly to her chest. Turbo emerged from her hiding place, and came to lay down against her mistress, offering what voiceless comfort she could. The young, and rather frightened teenager got up, transformed, for no reason other than that she felt braver as Maxy, and cautiously moved down the hallway to her room. There, she collapsed into her hideout, grabbed a pillow and gripped it tightly to her chest, and drifted off again.

Berto pulled up outside the McGrath residence, and frowned, noting that the lights were off, unusual if anyone was home.

"Maybe I should've called first," he said thoughtfully. Never the less, he got out and stepped onto the porch. He knocked lightly on the door, and listened for anyone. All he heard was Turbo whine at the door and paw it. _Wait. They never leave Turbo alone in the house. Someone must be here,_ he thought suddenly. He knocked louder, but still, only Turbo answered, with a higher whine. The teenager, now concerned, pulled out the spare key Maxy had given him, and opened the door. As he'd noticed earlier, the house was completely silent and dark. Turbo whimpered, and came up to him, licking his hand in greeting.

"What's wrong, girl?" the teenager asked, picking up the worry in the animal's body language. Turbo led him down the hallway, and stopped at Kelly's closed door. She pawed slightly at it, and looked up at him. Berto got the message, and opened the door. All he could see was the large tent filling most of the room's space. Turbo wandered off, willingly handing off the job of comforting Kelly. Cautiously, the Spanish teenager advanced further into the room. There was no sound from anywhere in the space. He pushed back the tent flap, and smiled. Maxy was asleep still, laying on her side, hugging the pillow's life out. Berto slipped into the tent and settled down on one side of the interior. It didn't seem even the slightest bit wrong or strange. She had offically become his girlfriend six or seven months ago, after all. For a few minutes, he just sat there, watching her, completely at ease. He reveled in the moment. As far as he could remember, it was the first time he'd seen her asleep on her own steam, not because of some drug of something. His mind filed the peaceful period into memory forever, drinking in every detail. Her chest rose and fell in time with her even steady breaths, and the tip of her ponytail had laid itself across her shoulder. Her grip on the pillow loosened, until it lay limply at her side. It was very peaceful, and the girl's boyfriend felt himself slipping into sleep as well.

Maxy rested fitfully, one of her first actual rests in days. The dream hadn't returned, and at some point, she'd felt even more relaxed, as if an extra measurement of safety had entered the equation. However, the relaxation was shattered as she felt herself falling, and landed into what looked like an apartment building. Inwardly, she cringed, recognizing the place. Rick's dorm room. Instantly, she knew the setting. Rick appeared from out of nowhere. He grabbed her hands, the iciness of his touch shooting through her entire body, freezing her in place.

"Kelly, please. You know I love you. Don't walk out on me. We can make this work," he said, so convincing and full of love, she wondered why she'd ever thought of giving him up. Then images of the beer bottles, memories of the shouting, cursing, threats, and lastly, the fist flying toward her right eye entered her mind. She steeled her nerves for what she knew would come.

"Rick, I told you before. This can't work. Maybe you love me with some part of your heart, but for me, the magic is gone. Forcing this relationship isn't going to help. It's over, I don't love you," she both felt and heard herself saying. Rick nodded to himself and let go of her hands, though she still felt frozen. He turned his back on her, as if in deep contemplation.

"If you won't love me," he began, still facing the wall.

"Rick, what are you saying?" she asked, a note of fear entering her voice. Rick whipped around, holding a small black object.

"Then you won't ever love anyone...again," he finished. The object turned into a pocket knife, which he swung down at her. Eyes wide with fear, the girl tried one last attempt.

"Rick, you don't want to do this..." she murmured, even as the blade embedded itself deep in her stomach, bare from her tank top. To her surprise, it didn't hurt. Red oozed and dripped out around the hilt of the blade, she watched it with morbid fascination as it flowed down to the band of her shorts and soaked in. He tore the knife from her body, eliciting a scream of pain, and stabbed again. The blood over-flowed off her shorts, and dribbled down on to the couch, forever marking it with evidence of the fight. Another stab, and other scream, and the blood began to pool on the carpet. She stared in horror at the bloody gashes in her mid-section, watching her life fluid stream from them. Rick grabbed her roughly by the shoulders, and forced her into a kiss. The pocket knife was pressed against her cheek, and left a smear of her own blood, along with a thin cut.

The teenage boy snapped awake by a sharp scream, and some terrified whimpering. He looked over. Maxy was still asleep, trapped in some nightmare. Her body jerked and writhed as she struggled to wake up. The pillow flew to one side by a sharp movement from one of her hands as tears streamed down her cheeks from behind her eyelids. Berto was confused for a second, then moved to her side. He planted his hands on her shoulders, and shouted for her to wake up. The jerky movements only increased sharply as she fought him.

"Maxy, wake up!" he commanded again. She screamed and lashed out, barely missing him. Berto whipped away from her, honestly thinking she was going to attack him. He watched with horrified interest as she started to come out of her dream. Hoping that she had calmed enough, and wouldn't strike out at him, Berto scooted back to her side, and laid one hand on her cheek. She paused in her struggle, and relaxed. _I can't believe she's still asleep,_ he thought. With a gasp, she actually woke, sat up, and quickly pressed her hands to her stomach and face, feeling for damage. No blood, no knife, just the scars from the fated night. She started when a pair of gentle arms wrapped tightly around her and drew the teenager close to something that felt warm, soft, comforting, and above all else, safe.

"That must have been some dream," an accented voice commented into her ear. Maxy registered it as Berto's instantly, and collapsed fully against him, drawing on the intense aura of love surrounding him.

"You don't know the half of it," she replied, then burst into tears, burying her face against his chest. If possible, he drew her closer, tightening his grip around her, as if a hug could just force the pain and fear away. For how long he didn't know, and furthermore, didn't care, Berto sat there, holding his girlfriend and rocking her gently. 

"Feeling better, _novia_?" he asked finally, loosening his grip somewhat. She kept her head rested against his chest, hearing his heartbeat relax to normalcy after the scare she'd given him.

"A little," she replied truthfully, sensing that he wanted the flat out truth. He turned her around so her back was facing him, and kept one arm around her waist while the other moved up to rub her shoulders. She relaxed slowly, muscle fiber by muscle fiber.

"You want to talk about it?" he pressed gently, stroking down one of her arms. She molded herself against him, starved for the safe comfort she was now emersed in.

"It was about my first and only other boyfriend," she started, then shivered. Even now, she could still feel his icy touch on her hands. She glanced down to make sure they weren't encased in ice. Berto took one of her hands and squeezed it. 

"When I first met him, I thought we were the perfect couple. I think I really did love him," she added, feeling her boyfriend's muscles tense up. She realized that all guys hate hearing about the old boyfriend, but Berto had asked.

"That is, until I found out about his drinking. That was almost three months into it. He never responded to anything I said, but promised to keep it under control. I believed him, until the first time I saw him drunk, and he socked me in the eye," she explained. The arm around her tightened protectively, and she reveled in the feeling. Rick had always the kind of 'every man for himself' guy. Not that she'd minded, being the type herself, but now it felt nice to have someone to turn to when she wasn't feeling her strongest.

"He apologized, and I thought we'd patched things up, but I guess not well enough. Now, though, I'm really glad. Berto, if we hadn't broken up, I'd probably never have come to Del Oro, and I love it here so much," she sighed. He put his other arm around her.

"I'm glad you came too," he told her, lips touching her cheek in a faint kiss.

"Me too. I feel safer here, with you, Josh and Xam, not like when I was with Rick. Six months into the relationship, and our dates usually consisted of him conking out in his dorm, drunk," she said quietly, the last part filled with disgust. Berto nodded sympathetically, wondering what all the screaming and thrashing had been. Maxy sighed, pretty much pressing her weight against the young man.

"After a really long talk with my closest friend, Lissa, I made up my mind to break it off with him. I still remember a lot of what we said, but one thing she said really sticks. 'Kel, you should have snapped it off the day after he punched you.' She's right, I was an idiot," the teenage girl said bitterly. She moved her body until her side was against him, and wrapped her arms around his waist, head on her boyfriend's shoulder.

"Comfortable?" he asked lightly, running a hand through her ponytail. She nodded against his shoulder as he slid his arms back around her.

"This is the part that's just plain haunted me. Breaking up with him," she murmured softly, involuntarily holding him closer.

"That bad?" he asked in understanding. Her head bobbed in agreement, and he lowered his head to hers, inducing a long kiss. She smiled up at him after.

"Thank you. Okay, I think I'm ready to tell, you think you can handle it?" she asked, a spark of her usual personality flickering in her eyes.

"I'm listening," he replied. She snuggled closer, sub-consciously seeking protection from her demons of the past.

"I went to his dorm room. When I went in, I could see he was clearly drunk. Wasn't expecting me, I guess. I told him we as a couple were over. He shot me this look, and told me to sit on the couch. He vanished for a minute, then reappeared, shoving something in his pocket. I'll always remember this. He begged me to stay, insisting that we could work this out. I told him again that the romance was gone, and I was leaving. He turned away, and I remember his exact words. 'If you won't love me...then you won't ever love anyone...again.' I thought the worst he could do was punch me and maybe scream at me a little," she sighed deeply, and cringed.

"Worse?" Berto asked, stating the obvious. The blue eyes flooded with tears, and she nodded, then the emotional volcanoe of pain, fear, and lost love erupted, for the first time.

"I found out what that thing in his pocket was. A pocket knife. Until he brought it down, I thought he was going to threaten me. But he stabbed me, three times," she said when she'd finished letting her tears flow. Her scars seemed to twinge with pain. She felt her boyfriend's other arm go around her, as if he hoped a hug could squeeze all the pain of the past out of her system. She didn't object, feeling too weary to do so even if she'd wished.

"How old were you?" his voice asked softly.

"Almost 17, in a couple months," she replied in an even softer tone.

"You've been having that dream over and over since then?" he continued. She nodded into his shoulder. _Almost 17...she's almost 20 now...for three years?_ he calculated mentally.

"Sometimes it's just a flash image of him standing over me with a knife. Usually, I wake up just as the knife is coming down the first time. This was the first time I got the full dream since I moved to Del Oro," she explained in a soft whisper.

"Full dream?" the boy whose arms she was in asked.

"After he stabbed me, Rick...kissed me, then threw me across the room. He turned away, and walked out the door. He was just going to leave me there until I was dead. I honestly thought I was going to die. I'd been stabbed three times," she whimpered. A hand rested itself on her cheek, and turned her face gently. A pair of lips pressed against hers softly, then deepened.

"You didn't, you wouldn't have. If you were anything back then like you are now, you wouldn't have. You've got too much spirit to die," he told her honestly, head still only centimeters away.

"You must be right," she replied, smiling softly. Still in his embrace, she moved so that her back was pressed against his chest. They remained in that position silently for a few minutes.

"Anything else you want to talk about?" he asked finally.

"I suppose I should finish the story. Well, anyway, Rick left, and I was just laying there. I couldn't think of any way I could get out of this mess. Then suddenly, the door was broken down, and a couple police officers entered. While I was being taken out to the ambulance, they explained that my friend, Lissa, had heard me scream, and had called them out. Rick was already in custody, though they'd only booked him for being over the limit on alcohol, and carrying a concealed weapon. I guess finding a battered half dead ex-girlfriend in his apartment added a few things to his charge," she chuckled coldly at the last line.

"I'll have to call your friend Lissa and thank her one of these days," Berto murmured. Maxy leaned against him, half relieved and half surprised. She'd honestly thought that she would have scared all those close to her away if they'd known about this chapter of her past. Berto didn't seem to think so, emphasizing this with how close he was holding her. 

"I spent almost a month in the hospital, and then the dreams started. I didn't have a roomie, so no-one ever really knew. Carol knew that I'd been attacked, and wanted me to come home right then, but I wanted to finish out the semester, if not the whole year. Lissa didn't realize that I was having them, and I had too much pride to tell anyone. Because I kept up my grades and my cheerful attitude, I don't think anyone noticed," she finished, sounding a touch bitter that during one of the hardest periods of her life, she had been alone.

"You didn't want them to notice, did you?" Berto said revealingly. His girlfriend nodded, then turned to face him, looking surprised.

"How did you know?" she questioned. 

"I know you better than you think. And now, I know you even more. Guess old love strengthens new, huh?" was the reply. Maxy chuckled and snuggled her head under his chin, bracing one hand against his chest.

"Know what I'd really like to do? I'd like to go back and visit Carol's grave. It's been over a year," she said suddenly, and softly. Berto didn't ask, and she didn't expect him to. Carol was one subject Kelly had talked over with Josh, and Xam, so Berto had been able to listen in.

"I'd just like to know how my family is doing, for real," Berto said in reply. The slight weight of her head lifted from his chest, and she looked up at him.

"Something happen?" she asked. He shook his head.

"Nothing serious. It's just I've been here for a few years, and I haven't seen them all this time," he shrugged. Her eyes went wide with sympathy.

"But don't they ever write? I know you do, I've seen a couple of your letters," she questioned with interest, hoping she wasn't going to bring out any pain he'd already dealt with and buried.

"Of course they write back. But still, it's not quite the same as being there. Reading about Maria's 'A+' essay isn't the same as being there when she tells about it. By the time I find out about something earth-shattering, it's become old news, and there's another event," he lamented.

"I know what you mean. It was kind of the same for me until I found Josh, except without the letters," his girlfriend murmured, then yawned.

"Somebody's tired," Berto observed jokingly. Maxy rested her head on his shoulder.

"You think?" she asked boredly.

"The suggested length of a good night's rest is eight hours, _novia._ Not five minutes," was the scolding reply. The brunette snorted softly.

"It's that dumb nightmare. I haven't been getting much sleep in the past four or five days," she informed him. He made a sympathetic noise.

"I'm sorry I didn't recognize it sooner. How have you been managing to keep up with your usual standards then?" he inquired. She shrugged in response.

"I do what I have to do to keep anyone from noticing. It's what I did in college, it's what I do now. I have this thing about showing that emotion in public. I just had my guard down today," she explained, stifling another yawn. The lack of rest the past few days was _really_ starting to catch up with her.

"That's silly. You know you can talk to me anytime. And Max and Xam would help you too, if you'll let us," he told her, tapping her nose lightly.

"Yeah, but I'm supposed to be lil miss tough girl," she reminded him, smirking slightly. He shrugged indifferently. 

"We all have our off days," he chided her, tightening his grip on her as they kissed again. Neither noticed Turbo slip in, until her tongue flicked across Berto's cheek. He made some gagging noises, rubbing at the slobber on his face. Maxy giggled tiredly, and stroked her pet.

*****

Hours later, about 11:00, Xam arrived home. In typical male fashion of completely ignoring the lateness of the hour, he clattered inside as noisily as possible, then scouted around the house for his twins. He passed by Kelly's room, saw the tent, and chuckled.

"I'll bet she used the gas grill to roast marshmallows in here too," he muttered, then came to the stairs leading down to the game room, spare bedroom, and laundry. On a whim, he snuck down the stairs, and into the game room. Because of the angle of the couch and TV, all he could see was the back of Berto's head. The teenager was intently focused on playing a video game. Kelly and Turbo were no where in sight. He tip-toed closer, hoping to startle his friend. He paused a few steps from the couch. Maxy was stretched out on the rest of the couch Berto didn't occupy, a blanket covering her body from the waist down. Her head rested on the younger teenager's right leg. With Turbo curled up on the floor before them, all they needed was a sleeping baby in Maxy's arms to complete the perfect family picture. Xam grinned impishly, and clapped Berto on the shoulder, a little violently. The teenager, clearly not expecting the attack, jumped slightly and dropped the controller. The movement woke Maxy, who yawned and turned her head to look up. Turbo was on her feet, looking for danger.

"Oh, hiya biggie bro," the brunette greeted drowsily. Xam gave her ponytail a playful tug.

"I was expecting Berto to be here, but the last thing I was expecting was you sleeping. I got worried when I wasn't tackled into the door," he joked. His sister yawned, and sat up.

"Turbo'll be happy to give you your greeting tackle. Go get 'em, Tee," she chuckled as Turbo cleared the couch, and knocked Xam to the floor. By the time he'd managed to elude the hyper dog, Berto had resumed his game, and Maxy had taken back her position. Her brother came up and moved her legs, sat down, and challenged Berto to a match. Maxy kicked her brother lightly in the side for revenge, then turned her head to watch the battle. Turbo came back to her place by the couch, and relative silence, punctuated by clicks from the controllers again enclosed the room. Maxy fell back asleep just before Berto beat Xam, for the third time.

Josh was the last one to arrive home, as usual. It was after midnight, but then, not like the triplets ever went to bed without at least saying "good-night" to each other. He hurried to his room to dump off the armored padding he'd been wearing for the fantasy-war battle he and a friend, Park, had set up. He glanced into Xam's room, nothing. Same for Kelly's. He peered outside on the off chance even Kelly was crazy enough to be running her gymnastics drills at midnight in the pitch black darkness. Finding no one, the teenager headed for the game room. Of course, there he found both the twins he was looking for, and Berto. He and Xam were engaged in yet another re-match, and, coming closer, he could see his sister's head resting on Berto's knee. He slipped up, and clipped both boys firmly in the backs of their heads.

"Morning!" he greeted brightly, grinning as they dropped their controllers. Once again, Maxy was jolted awake by one of her brothers scaring her boyfriend almost senseless.

"Do the words 10:00 mean anything to you?" she yawned, sitting up. He shook his head, and pilfered Xam's controller. Amazingly, the relaxing silence reigned again. Maxy wondered briefly how it was that she, Josh, and Xam could be in the same room, and not be causing trouble. She gave the game they were playing the credit, and fell back asleep, glad that she hadn't really been interrogated on her listlessness. Berto yawned and handed off his controller to Xam, and was asleep when the teenager glanced over at the couple a few minutes later. Josh moved around to the side of the couch, and the remaining two continued dueling.

Half an hour later, Turbo woke up, stood, stretched, and looked around. She saw her owner curled up on the couch against her boyfriend, both were asleep. The dog made a half-hearted attempt to wake them, then snorted softly. Xam was out as well, leaning against the back of the couch. She nosed his knee, then lost interest in the boy. Josh was sleeping too, stretched out face-down beside the couch. The dog wandered over, nudged his side, then trotted back to the TV. She used her nose to shut off the console, then padded back to Josh and laid down on his back. He grunted sleepily when she settled down, but remained asleep. The dog rested her head on his shoulder, and dozed off.

*****

The next morning, Rachel showed up at 8:00, concerned when four of her partners hadn't shown up. Using the key Josh had given her, the McGrath/Steel triplets gave anyone who was a trustworthy friend a spare to their house, she entered the almost perfectly silent house. Like Xam and Josh had done, she checked the three rooms, and was only slightly surprised by the tent set up in Kelly's room. Both of the boys' rooms were empty as well, and generically messy. She passed by the stairs leading to the game room, and the light from the TV caught her eye.

"I wouldn't be surprised if they were up the entire night playing video games," she muttered, heading down the steps. However, the television was playing some random cartoon, and the four teenagers and one dog were silent. Rachel stepped around to the couch, and smiled slightly. None of them had moved, and the same relaxing family essence was still there. The only awake N-tek agent shut off the TV, then headed back upstairs, trying to be as quiet as possible. She went into Kelly's room, and plucked the digital camera off the teen's desk, then hurried back to the game room. She stood in front of the television, and focused the camera, making sure to get everyone into the photo. Turbo's ear twitched, as if anticipating the flash.

"Say cheese," she whispered, then pressed the shutter. The click and flash of light were sufficient to wake Maxy, who yelped and dug her nails into Berto's leg, waking him, and Turbo, who squealed and started dancing around, still on Josh's back. Xam was the last, woken by a kick to the side from Maxy. He started yelling at her, and Josh was shouting at Turbo, who by this time was cowering from him, huddled in the gap between Maxy and Berto.

"That had to be one of the strangest reactions to having a picture taken I've ever seen," a voice said, catching all five's attention. They looked towards the TV to see Rachel, one hand on her hip, the other holding Kelly's digital camera by the strap.

"Well, no fair using it to wake us up," she accused, yawning. The others added their half-awake agreements. Rachel sighed and handed Maxy the camera.

"I'd advise fully waking up and getting ready. You five were supposed to be at N-tek an hour ago," she informed them, heading for the stairs. The teenagers took several more minutes to wake up, then Josh transformed into Max, and they had a quick race up the stairs.

  


_Okay, this wasn't supposed to have any point whatsoever. It's more to understand Kelly/Maxy's character, and dig a little into her past. The ending was to make the story longer and add a little humor to an otherwise serious story. The next in this series will be "D.O.X. Danger."_

-Maxy Steel


End file.
